Forensic Science Program, Division of Health and Applied Sciences, Faculty of Science, Prince of Songkla University, Thailand; Forensic Science Innovation and Service Center, Prince of Songkla University, Thailand.
Forensic Science Program, Division of Health and Applied Sciences, Faculty of Science, Prince of Songkla University, Thailand.
Forensic Sci Int Genet. 2024 May;70:103027. doi: 10.1016/j.fsigen.2024.103027. Epub 2024 Feb 20.
Currently, the global elephant population has significantly declined due to the poaching of elephants for their ivory, and this is the reason why elephants are listed in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). However, Thailand allows the legal trade of ivory from registered, domesticated Asian elephants, leading to the smuggling of African elephant ivory, and passing them off as Asian elephant ivory. Therefore, this research aims to develop and validate a portable strip test to discriminate between Asian and African elephants DNA, using Recombinase Polymerase Amplification (RPA) and Lateral Flow Dipstick assay (LFD) according to international standards. The results showed that the strip test can be successfully developed with 100% accuracy (n = 105). This kit is specific to elephants, has a detection limit of 0.125 ng of DNA, and can effectively discriminate a variety of elephant ivory, including raw ivory, ivory products, and aged ivory over 25 years old, which had been damaged by fire, all with 100% accuracy (n = 117). Additionally, the developed strip test is designed to be portable and cost-effective. It does not require expensive laboratory equipment and provides a faster analysis process compared with conventional PCR-based methods. This will expedite the legal process and enforcement of laws related to elephant conservation, reducing the opportunities for illegal activities, and enabling timely prosecution under relevant wildlife conservation laws in Thailand and internationally.
目前，由于大象的象牙遭到偷猎，全球大象数量已大幅减少，这也是大象被列入《濒危野生动植物种国际贸易公约》（CITES）的原因。然而，泰国允许从注册的驯化亚洲象合法交易象牙，导致非洲象牙走私并被冒充为亚洲象牙。因此，本研究旨在根据国际标准，使用重组酶聚合酶扩增（RPA）和横向流动纸条检测（LFD）开发并验证一种用于区分亚洲象和非洲象 DNA 的便携式纸条检测方法。结果表明，该纸条检测方法可 100%准确（n = 105）成功开发。该试剂盒对大象具有特异性，检测限为 0.125ng DNA，可有效区分各种象牙，包括生象牙、象牙制品和 25 年以上的老化象牙，准确率均为 100%（n = 117）。此外，开发的纸条检测方法设计便携且具有成本效益。它不需要昂贵的实验室设备，与传统的基于 PCR 的方法相比，提供了更快的分析过程。这将加快与大象保护相关的法律程序和执法，减少非法活动的机会，并使泰国和国际上相关野生动物保护法能够及时起诉。
