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Review
. 2019 Mar 1;10(3):192.
doi: 10.3390/genes10030192.

Beyond Biodiversity: Can Environmental DNA (eDNA) Cut It as a Population Genetics Tool?

Clare I M Adams  1 , Michael Knapp  2 , Neil J Gemmell  3 , Gert-Jan Jeunen  4 , Michael Bunce  5 , Miles D Lamare  6 , Helen R Taylor  7
Affiliations
Review

Beyond Biodiversity: Can Environmental DNA (eDNA) Cut It as a Population Genetics Tool?

Clare I M Adams et al. Genes (Basel). .

Abstract

Population genetic data underpin many studies of behavioral, ecological, and evolutionary processes in wild populations and contribute to effective conservation management. However, collecting genetic samples can be challenging when working with endangered, invasive, or cryptic species. Environmental DNA (eDNA) offers a way to sample genetic material non-invasively without requiring visual observation. While eDNA has been trialed extensively as a biodiversity and biosecurity monitoring tool with a strong taxonomic focus, it has yet to be fully explored as a means for obtaining population genetic information. Here, we review current research that employs eDNA approaches for the study of populations. We outline challenges facing eDNA-based population genetic methodologies, and suggest avenues of research for future developments. We advocate that with further optimizations, this emergent field holds great potential as part of the population genetics toolkit.

Keywords: biodiversity; conservation; eDNA; genetics; mitochondrial DNA; mtDNA; populations; sampling methodology.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Possible avenues of analyzing environmental DNA (eDNA) for population information. After eDNA is shed into the water column by target organisms of interest, collected, and extracted, multiple analyses can be used to obtain population data. These analyses have diverse applications, highlighted in the top yellow row, but each technique also presents its own challenges, highlighted in the bottom yellow row.
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