Application of Exon Primed Intron Crossing markers to cross-amplify Oreochromis species in Eastern Africa

Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) and related Oreochromis species are vital to Africaninland fisheries and aquaculture yet face increasing threats from human activities. Effectiveconservation and their sustainable management require genetic monitoring tools that canassess adaptive variation across species. Despite their ecological and economic importance infisheries and aquaculture, Oreochromis species are threatened by human-mediated activitiesnecessitating the need to monitor their genetic diversity using molecular tools.Variousspecies. Various neutral markers have been used to monitor biodiversity inorganisms, but they are limited in cross-amplification among various taxa. Non-neutralmarkers such as Exon-Primed Intron Crossing (EPIC) not only cross amplify various taxa buttarget genetic regions influenced by adaptive variations because of selective pressure. Thisstudy therefore developed 50 EPIC markers from Oreochromis niloticus reference genometargeting immune related genes to assess their potential to cross-amplify Oreochromisspecies.