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All issues Volume 39 / No 4 (July-August 2008) Apidologie, 39 4 (2008) 446-455 Abstract
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Issue
Apidologie
Volume 39, Number 4, July-August 2008
Page(s) 446 - 455
DOI https://doi.org/10.1051/apido:2008026
Published online 25 June 2008
Apidologie 39 (2008) 446-455
DOI: 10.1051/apido:2008026

Genetic diversity and population structure of Trigona pagdeni Schwarz in Thailand

Sirikul Thummajitsakul1, Sirawut Klinbunga2, 3, Deborah Smith4 and Siriporn Sittipraneed1

1  Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of science, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand
2  Aquatic Molecular Genetics and Biotechnology, National Science Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (NSTDA), 113 Paholyothin Road, Klong 1, Klong Luang, Pathum Thani 12120, Thailand
3  Center of Excellence for Marine Biotechnology, Faculty of Science, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand
4  Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Entomology Program, Haworth Hall, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas 66045, USA

Received 27 December 2006 - Revised 19 February 2008 - Accepted 14 March 2008 - Published online 25 June 2008

Abstract - Samples of the stingless bee Trigona pagdeni Schwarz were collected from north, northeast, central and peninsular Thailand. Genetic variation and population structure were investigated using a DNA fingerprinting technique, TE-AFLP, and Analysis of Molecular Variance (AMOVA). We found high levels of genetic variation among individuals in all populations, but mean expected heterozygosity was highest in the Northeast. We used AMOVA to calculate $\phi$PT (analogous to Wright's $\phi$ST for codominant markers) to compare genetic differentiation among populations. This revealed significant genetic differentiation among the four populations ($\phi$PT = 0.18, P = 0.01). We also detected differentiation ($\phi$PT = 0.13, P = 0.001) between samples collected north and south of the Kra ecotone, a biogeographical zone of transition between seasonal evergreen and mixed moist deciduous forests. However the greatest differentiation was detected between samples from the northeast and the other locations combined ($\phi$PT = 0.21, P = 0.001). This method can be applied to the study of population structure in T. pagdeni and other stingless bees, and may provide a useful tool for management and conservation of this species.


Key words: Meliponini  / Trigona / DNA fingerprinting  / AFLP / geographic variation


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