Validation of loop-mediated isothermal amplification for fast and portable sex determination across the phylogeny of birds.

PCR is a universal tool for the multiplication of specific DNA sequences. For example, PCR-based sex determination is widely used, and a diversity of primer sets is available. However, this protocol requires thermal cycling and electrophoresis, so results are typically obtained in laboratories and several days after sampling. Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) is an alternative to PCR that can take molecular ecology outside the laboratory. Although its application has been successfully probed for sex determination in three species of a single avian Family (raptors, Accipitridae), its generality remains untested and suitable primers across taxa are lacking. We designed and tested the first LAMP-based primer set for sex determination across the modern birds (NEO-W) based on a fragment of the gene chromo-helicase-DNA-binding protein located on the female-specific W chromosome. As nucleotide identity is expected to increase among more related taxa, taxonomically targeted primers were also developed for the Order Falconiformes and Families Psittacidae, Ciconiidae, Estrildidae and Icteridae as examples. NEO-W successfully determined sex in a subset of 21 species within 17 Families and 10 Orders and is therefore a candidate primer for all modern birds. Primer sets designed specifically for the selected taxa correctly assigned sex to the evaluated species. A short troubleshooting guide for new LAMP users is provided to identify false negatives and optimize LAMP reactions. This study represents the crucial next step towards the use of LAMP for molecular sex determination in birds and other applications in molecular ecology.