Development of 39 novel polymorphic microsatellite markers for the giant mottled eel Anguilla marmorata and cross-amplification in other eel species

In this study, we have developed microsatellite markers for the giant mottled eel (Anguilla marmorata) from expressed sequence tag (EST) sequences using next-generation sequencing. Consequently, a total of 39 novel polymorphic microsatellite markers were identified in 32 individuals from Wangquan River wild population area. The range of observed heterozygosity, expected heterozygosity and polymorphism information content were 0.044–1.000, 0.285–0.946 and 0.3783–0.9016, respectively. In addition, eight loci were deviated from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium and modified by Bonferroni correction, and the results showed no significant linkage disequilibrium between the locus pair. The amplification of cross-species was conducted in Anguilla bicolor pacifica and Anguilla japonica, which revealed the applicability of EST-SSR primers. These EST-SSR markers can provide sufficient polymorphism for population genetic studies, pedigree and genome mapping of these three kinds of closely related eels.