Populations of most freshwater mussels (Unionidae) are declining worldwide; these includes Sinanodonta spp., which inhabit artificial ponds in Japan. The detection of environmental DNA (eDNA) would be a rapid and efficient method for monitoring the distribution of Sinanodonta populations. Accordingly, the aim of the present study was to compare the results of real-time PCR-based eDNA detection to those of hand collection in 24 ponds in Japan. Sinanodonta eDNA was detected in most of the study ponds where Sinanodonta spp. were found by hand collection, and there was a positive correlation between the eDNA detection rate and the number of Sinanodonta specimens collected by hand. These findings demonstrate that eDNA detection is a valuable alternative method of evaluating the distribution of Sinanodonta spp., and that this method has a similar detection sensitivity to that of hand collection. The eDNA method can be used to monitor freshwater mussels at broad scales and prohibitive depths where hand collection is difficult.

中文翻译：

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通过环境DNA检测人造池塘中的淡水贻贝（Sinanodonta spp。）：与传统手工收集方法的比较

世界范围内大多数淡水贻贝（ussel科）的数量正在减少；其中包括居住在日本人工池塘的Sinanodonta spp.。环境DNA（eDNA）的检测将是一种监测Sinanodonta种群分布的快速而有效的方法。因此，本研究的目的是比较基于实时PCR的eDNA检测结果与日本24个池塘中人工收集的结果。在Sinanodonta spp的大多数研究池塘中均检测到Sinanodonta eDNA 。通过手工收集发现，并且eDNA检测率与Sinanodonta数量呈正相关手工收集标本。这些发现表明，eDNA检测是评估Sinanodonta spp。分布的一种有价值的替代方法，并且该方法具有与手收集相似的检测灵敏度。eDNA方法可用于在难以收集手的情况下在较宽的规模和禁止的深度监测淡水贻贝。