Characterizing Undifilum Species from Locoweed Using DNA Sequencing

Astragalus and Oxytropis locoweed are flowering plants found in the dry areas of the western United States. Both species are hosts of the toxic fungus called Undifilum, a fungal endophyte, which is a slow growing fungus. Regions of fungal DNA were amplified to identify the different species of the Undifilum fungus. For identification we tested the applications of NMS and Alt A regions to differentiate the species. With these PCR primers (NMS and AltA) we were able to run the samples from the DNA of Astragalus wootoni, A. pubentissimus, A. lentiginosus, A. mollissimus and O. sericea. PCR was done using the protocols for other species of fungi. Temperature protocols were followed as written and PCR products run through DNA electrophoresis to determine if the PCR worked. All positive samples were sequenced and aligned. Base pair differences were examined from the different species of Undifilum. This enabled us to determine the efficiency of these primers to identify species. Bridges Program R25 GM048998-13.