Isolation and identification of Azolla species from selected regions of Iraq

Woroud M. Abdullah, Suaad K. Abd-Al-Wahab

Abstract


Azolla fern, rich in proteins (up to 30%), carbohydrates, and vitamins, holds nutritional, environmental, and economic importance as a biofertilizer, animal feed, and water purifier. Its occurrence in Iraq has been reported in Kalar, the Hawr al-Hartha marshes near Basra, and the Tigris River, with studies from 2015 to 2023 confirming its local distribution. In the present study, three Azolla samples were collected from different locations: Abu Ghraib district in Baghdad province, Karbala province, and Salah al-Din province. DNA was extracted and amplified to assess the genetic diversity of the available Azolla species. PCR analysis revealed that the ferns A. microphylla and A. nilotica each produced a single DNA band. Sequence analysis showed 99.2% similarity of one sample with A. microphylla (accession number PQ587101.1), thereby identifying it as A. microphylla. Another sample showed 99% similarity with A. nilotica (accession number PQ587100.1), confirming its identification as A. nilotica. A phylogenetic tree was constructed using the NCBI-BLASTn program. Comparative analysis of the nucleotide sequences with reference data from the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), using BioEdit software, indicated that the A. nilotica isolate shared 99% similarity with an American isolate, while A. microphylla showed 99% similarity with Indian isolates. This study provides new insights into the biodiversity of Azolla in Iraq and identifies its species through molecular characterization.


Keywords


Azolla, Molecular characterization, Genetic diversity, Iraq flora, Phylogenetic analysis

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References


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DOI: https://doi.org/10.33804/pp.009.03.5824

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