Novel tetranucleotide microsatellite markers for Chinese beard eel (Cirrhimuraena chinensis Kaup).

In this study, we characterized 12 novel polymorphic microsatellite loci for Chinese beard eel (Cirrhimuraena chinensis Kaup) from a tetranucleotide microsatellite-enriched library. Loci screened on a sample of 37 individuals from Xiamen wild stocks revealed 8 to 24 alleles per locus, with a mean of 13.83 over all loci. Observed and expected heterozygosities ranged from 0.270 to 0.944 and 0.439 to 0.942, respectively. These efficient genetic markers thus provide useful tools in the study of the population genetics and phylogeography of Chinese beard eel.