PRIMER OPTIMIZATION AS GENETIC MARKER PRIMER BASED ON CYTOCHROME B GENE ON SUMATRAN ELEPHANT (Elephas maximus sumatranus) NON-INVASIVE SAMPLES

Sumatran elephant is declared as critically endangered by IUCN since 2011. In supporting conservation efforts on sumatran elephant in its natural habitat, molecular data collection of their population needs to be done. Genetic source material is mostly obtained in its natural habitat is its dung/feces. Study on cytochrome B gene as genetic marker from sumatran elephant fecal samples can be done to get additional genetic data as a form of conservation effort. Primer optimization as genetic marker based on cytochrome B gene has been carried out as an early study on sumatran elephant genetics.  Primer optimization program based on cytochrome B genetic marker from sumatran elephant fecal samples was under Higher Education Applied Research funded by The Ministry of Research, Technology, and Higher Education. DNA was isolated from fecal samples of captive sumatran elephants in Elephant Training Center, Way Kambas National Park. Primer optimization was done via amplification by increasing certain temperature. Specificity test was done to ensure that the primer only recognized sumatran elephant DNA. The best result was obtained with the annealing temperature of 52oC

IDENTIFICATION AND CHARACTERISATION OF COI GENE IN FEMALE SUMATRAN ELEPHANT (Elephas maximus sumatranus) IN ELEPHANT TRAINING CENTRE, WAY KAMBAS NATIONAL PARK

Sumatran elephant is a subspecies of endemic Asian elephants on the island of Sumatra and is included in the Red List of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) with critically endangered status. The building of the Elephant Training Centre (ETC) in Way Kambas National Park (WKNP) is one of the conservation efforts of Sumatran elephants. Small and closed population size lead to an increased risk of inbreeding that triggers reduction in genetic variation and viability and increases the risk of extinction. The phylogenetic pattern of Sumatran elephants in Indonesia has shown a low population genetic diversity. Genetic diversity information is indispensable to support the direction of decision making in Sumatran elephant conservation policy. The DNA isolation of Sumatran elephants in ETC, WKNP has performed as a first step to trace its genetic variation. The advanced step of DNA isolation is the use of cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) gene for identification of genetic characteristics in Sumatran elephants. The COI gene is one of the genes on the mitochondrial genome and in molecular studies it is used as a genetic marker to study genetic characteristics between species and individuals. Identification and characterisation are done by sequencing process and data analysis in the form of electroforegram using Molecular Evolution Genetics Analysis (MEGA) software version 6.0. to see the genetic diversity of the female Sumatran elephant population in ETC, WKNP. Based on the results of the analysis it is indicated that the genetic distance of 24 individual female Sumatran elephant from PLG, TNWK is 0.000 with a homology value of 100%, strengthened by the construction of phylogenetic tree. The absence of genetic distance indicates a close genetic relationship, so it can be concluded all individual female Sumatran elephants in the PLG, TNWK is derived from one population group.