Environmental DNA (eDNA)
Metabarcoding as a Sustainable Tool
of Coastal Biodiversity Assessment
Z. A. Danial Hariz and M. A. Noor Adelyna
Abstract Global biodiversity loss represents one of the most serious
environmental crises of the 21st centuries, with substantial impact on both
ecosystem services and the health of our environment. 52% of global biodiversity
decline was recorded between 1970 and 2010, and this loss was even higher for
freshwater populations than for marine or terrestrial ecosystems (WWF 2014).
Undeniably, Malaysian coastal ecosystem harbour extraordinary biodiversity having
this country is recognised as one of the megadiverse country. However, unsustainable development of the Malaysian coastal area has led to the decline of the
aquatic biodiversity. There is limited knowledge on the extent of biodiversity and
the genetic resources in the aquatic environment some of them could already be
extinct before we could identify them. Therefore, by implementing the Living Lab
concept accustomed to the university, a non-invasive alternative method called
environmental DNA or eDNA metabarcoding with an aid of Next Generation
Sequencing (NGS) was introduced to identify species diversity of fish in a coastal
ecosystem. In this study, the eDNA metabarcoding tool is applied in assessing
water samples for fish species detection. This new, time and cost-effective method
enables the acquisition of large datasets, paving the way for a finer understanding
of fish diversity in different river landscape, with major implications for sustainable
fisheries management and conservation, in parallel to goal fourteen (14) of the
United Nations Sustainable Development Goals—Life Below Water.
Keywords Biodiversity · Environmental DNA (eDNA) · Sustainable tool ·
Metabarcoding
Z. A. Danial Hariz (B) · M. A. Noor Adelyna
Centre for Global Sustainable Studies (CGSS), Level 5, Hamzah Sendut Library,
Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800 USM, Penang, Malaysia
e-mail: geneprodigy@gmail.com
M. A. Noor Adelyna
School of Biological Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800 USM, Penang, Malaysia
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
W. Leal Filho et al. (eds.), Universities as Living Labs for Sustainable Development,
World Sustainability Series, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-15604-6_14
211
Metabarcoding as a Sustainable Tool
of Coastal Biodiversity Assessment
Z. A. Danial Hariz and M. A. Noor Adelyna
Abstract Global biodiversity loss represents one of the most serious
environmental crises of the 21st centuries, with substantial impact on both
ecosystem services and the health of our environment. 52% of global biodiversity
decline was recorded between 1970 and 2010, and this loss was even higher for
freshwater populations than for marine or terrestrial ecosystems (WWF 2014).
Undeniably, Malaysian coastal ecosystem harbour extraordinary biodiversity having
this country is recognised as one of the megadiverse country. However, unsustainable development of the Malaysian coastal area has led to the decline of the
aquatic biodiversity. There is limited knowledge on the extent of biodiversity and
the genetic resources in the aquatic environment some of them could already be
extinct before we could identify them. Therefore, by implementing the Living Lab
concept accustomed to the university, a non-invasive alternative method called
environmental DNA or eDNA metabarcoding with an aid of Next Generation
Sequencing (NGS) was introduced to identify species diversity of fish in a coastal
ecosystem. In this study, the eDNA metabarcoding tool is applied in assessing
water samples for fish species detection. This new, time and cost-effective method
enables the acquisition of large datasets, paving the way for a finer understanding
of fish diversity in different river landscape, with major implications for sustainable
fisheries management and conservation, in parallel to goal fourteen (14) of the
United Nations Sustainable Development Goals—Life Below Water.
Keywords Biodiversity · Environmental DNA (eDNA) · Sustainable tool ·
Metabarcoding
Z. A. Danial Hariz (B) · M. A. Noor Adelyna
Centre for Global Sustainable Studies (CGSS), Level 5, Hamzah Sendut Library,
Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800 USM, Penang, Malaysia
e-mail: geneprodigy@gmail.com
M. A. Noor Adelyna
School of Biological Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800 USM, Penang, Malaysia
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
W. Leal Filho et al. (eds.), Universities as Living Labs for Sustainable Development,
World Sustainability Series, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-15604-6_14
211