Nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region as a universal DNA barcode marker for Fungi

Six DNA regions were evaluated as potential DNA barcodes for Fungi, the second largest kingdom of eukaryotic life, by a multinational, multilaboratory consortium. The region of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 used as the animal barcode was excluded as a potential marker, because it is difficult to amplify in fungi, often includes large introns, and can be insufficiently variable. Three subunits from the nuclear ribosomal RNA cistron were compared together with regions of three representative protein-coding genes (largest subunit of RNA polymerase II, second largest subunit of RNA polymerase II, and minichromosome maintenance protein). Although the protein-coding gene regions often had a higher…

• AP
  Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
• LT
  Life Technologies Corporation
• GC
  Genome Canada
• OG
  Ontario Genomics
• OG
  Ontario Genomics Institute
• NI
  National Institutes of Health
• BA
  Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council

  Award: BBS/E/W/10964A01B
• UN
  U.S. National Library of Medicine