Illegal hunting is a major threat to the elephants of Africa, with more elephants killed by poachers than die from natural causes. DNA from tusks has been used to infer the source populations for confiscated ivory, relying on nuclear genetic markers. However, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequences can also provide information on the geographic origins of elephants due to female elephant philopatry. Here, we introduce the Loxodonta Localizer (LL; www.loxodontalocalizer.org), an interactive software tool that uses a database of mtDNA sequences compiled from previously published studies to provide information on the potential provenance of confiscated ivory. A 316 bp control region sequence, which can be readily generated from DNA extracted from ivory, is used as a query. The software generates a listing of haplotypes reported among 1917 African elephants in 24 range countries, sorted in order of similarity to the query sequence. The African locations from which haplotype sequences have been previously reported are shown on a map. We demonstrate examples of haplotypes reported from only a single locality or country, examine the utility of the program in identifying elephants from countries with varying degrees of sampling, and analyze batches of confiscated ivory. The LL allows for the source of confiscated ivory to be assessed within days, using widely available molecular methods that do not depend on a particular platform or laboratory. The program enables identification of potential regions or localities from which elephants are being poached, with capacity for rapid identification of populations newly or consistently targeted by poachers.

中文翻译：

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Loxodonta Localizer：一种使用线粒体 DNA 推断非洲大象及其象牙来源的软件工具

非法狩猎是非洲大象的主要威胁，被偷猎者杀死的大象多于自然原因死亡的大象。来自象牙的 DNA 已被用于推断被没收象牙的来源种群，依赖于核遗传标记。然而，线粒体 DNA (mtDNA) 序列也可以提供有关大象地理起源的信息，这是由于雌性大象的爱好。在这里，我们介绍了 Loxodonta Localizer (LL; www.loxodontalocalizer.org)，这是一种交互式软件工具，它使用从先前发表的研究中汇编的 mtDNA 序列数据库，提供有关被没收象牙的潜在来源的信息。一个 316 bp 的控制区序列可以很容易地从从象牙中提取的 DNA 中产生，被用作查询。该软件生成在 24 个分布国家的 1917 头非洲大象中报告的单倍型列表，按与查询序列的相似性排序。先前已报告单倍型序列的非洲位置显示在地图上。我们展示了仅从一个地方或国家报告的单倍型示例，检查该程序在识别来自不同采样程度的国家的大象方面的效用，并分析没收的象牙批次。LL 允许使用不依赖于特定平台或实验室的广泛可用的分子方法在几天内评估被没收的象牙的来源。该程序能够识别出大象被偷猎的潜在区域或地点，