Identification of microsatellites in the California red abalone, Haliotis rufescens

We report on the progress of our genetic studies on red abalone (Haliotis r ufescens). The first microsatellite locus in red abalone was obtained by cr eating size-selected genomic libraries and screening for all combinations o f dinucleotide and trinucleotide repeats. Genomic libraries were created fo r samples from northern California (Punta Gorda Reserve), central Californi a (Morro Bay), and southern California (Santa Barbara). Initial sequencing of positive clones identified 21 microsatellites. The most common repeats w ere GT/TG and AC/CA. Primers were designed for the polymorphic microsatelli te locus Hruf200, which had 21 alleles ranging from 97 to 149 base pairs in size. Some rare alleles were observed in only northern or southern Califor nia collection sites. Various tissue types were evaluated for abalone genom ic library construction, and gonad tissues produced the highest yield of cl ean DNA. Mantle tissues were tested for field treatments such as alcohol, f reezing, and air drying amplified Hruf200. A DNA archive was established fo r the red abalone.