Intraspecific variation in the stingless bee Melipona beecheii assessed with PCR-RFLP of the ITS1 ribosomal DNA

Variation intraspécifique chez l'abeille sans aiguillon Melipona beecheii déterminée par PCR-RFLP de la région ITS-1 de l'ADN ribosomal

William de Jesús May-Itzá , José Javier Guadalupe Quezada-Euán , Eunice Enriquez , Pilar de La Rúa

In previous works, significant variation in morphometric and molecular characteristics was detected among populations of M. beecheii. Here RFLP tests of the internal transcribed spacer 1 of the ribosomal gene were performed to confirm those results and to evaluate the intraspecific variability within the species. The complete ITS1 region and the flanking regions showed length variation (1720 to 1670) and also three different restriction patterns that allowed differentiation of three groups of colonies with different geographic distribution. Mexican colonies from Yucatán, Campeche and Chiapas, together with one colony from northern Guatemala formed one group, a second was composed of colonies from southern Guatemala, El Salvador and Costa Rica and a third one corresponded to one colony from San Marcos (Guatemala but close to the Mexican border). Such test could be used to characterize locally adapted ecotypes subject to conservation efforts.

Mots clés: stingless bees; Melipona beecheii; ITS1 region; RFLP; genetic variability<br>---<br>abeille sans aiguillon; Apidae; Meliponini; variabilité génétique; génétique population

Domaines: Zoologie des invertébrés; Biodiversité; Ecologie, Environnement; Science des productions animales

William de Jesús May-Itzá, José Javier Guadalupe Quezada-Euán, Eunice Enriquez, Pilar de La Rúa. Intraspecific variation in the stingless bee Melipona beecheii assessed with PCR-RFLP of the ITS1 ribosomal DNA. Apidologie, 2009, 40 (5), ⟨10.1051/apido/2009036⟩. ⟨hal-00891962⟩