Development of 60 SNP markers in Pelodiscus sinensis based on transcriptome sequencing

The Chinese softshell turtle (Pelodiscus sinensis) is a kind of subaquatic reptile with high nutritional value, medicinal value and economic value. However, the number of wild turtles has dropped dramatically due to excessive fishing and habitat destruction. Artificial breeding of the turtle is facing the dilemma of germplasm degradation and lack of seedlings, which seriously hinders the sustainable development of the turtle industry. In the present study, 60 novel single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers were developed based on high-throughput sequencing. Genetic diversity analysis revealed that the values of observed heterozygosity (Ho) and expected heterozygosity (He) varied from 0.0312 to 0.7500 and from 0.0312 to 0.4841, respectively, and the minor allele frequency ranged from 0.3333 to 0.5000. Only four loci showed significant deviation from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium. The present study will provide a valuable tool for population study and resource conservation.