Data from: Species and hybrid identification of sturgeon caviar: a new molecular approach to detect illegal trade

Overexploitation of wild populations due to the high economic value of caviar has driven sturgeons to near extinction. The high prices commanded by caviar on world markets have made it a magnet for illegal and fraudulent caviar trade, often involving low-value farmed caviar being sold as top-quality caviar. We present a new molecular approach for the identification of pure sturgeon species and hybrids that are among the most commercialized species in Europe and North America. Our test is based on the discovery of species-specific single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the ribosomal protein S7, supplemented with the Vimentin gene and the mitochondrial D-loop. Test validations performed in 702 specimens of target and nontarget sturgeon species demonstrated a 100% identification success for Acipenser naccarii, A. fulvescens, A. stellatus, A. sinensis and A. transmontanus. In addition to species identification, our approach allows the identification of Bester and AL hybrids, two of the most economically important hybrids in the world, with 80% and 100% success, respectively. Moreover, the approach has the potential to identify many other existing sturgeon hybrids. The development of a standardized sturgeon identification tool will directly benefit trade law enforcement, providing the tools to monitor and regulate the legal trade of caviar and protect sturgeon stocks from illicit producers and traders, hence contributing to safeguarding this group of heavily threatened species.

由于鱼子酱极高的经济价值，野生鲟鱼种群遭到过度捕捞，已濒临灭绝。鱼子酱在全球市场的高昂售价使其成为非法与欺诈性鱼子酱贸易的目标，此类贸易常将低价值养殖鱼子酱冒充顶级品质鱼子酱进行售卖。本研究提出一种全新的分子检测方法，用于识别欧洲与北美地区商业化程度最高的纯种鲟鱼及其杂交品种。该检测方法基于核糖体蛋白S7基因中物种特异性单核苷酸多态性（single nucleotide polymorphisms, SNPs）的发现，并辅以波形蛋白（Vimentin）基因与线粒体D-loop区域作为补充检测位点。针对目标与非目标鲟鱼物种的共702份样本开展的检测验证结果显示，该方法对纳氏鲟（Acipenser naccarii）、湖鲟（A. fulvescens）、星鲟（A. stellatus）、中华鲟（A. sinensis）以及太平洋鲟（A. transmontanus）的鉴定成功率均达100%。除物种鉴定外，本方法还可识别全球经济价值最高的两种鲟鱼杂交品种——贝斯特杂交种（Bester）与AL杂交种，二者的鉴定成功率分别为80%与100%。此外，该方法还具备识别其他诸多现有鲟鱼杂交品种的潜力。标准化鲟鱼鉴定工具的开发将直接助力贸易执法工作，为监管与规范鱼子酱合法贸易、保护鲟鱼种群免受非法生产者与交易者侵害提供技术支撑，进而有助于挽救这一受严重威胁的物种类群。