Microsatellite primers in the lichen symbiotic alga Trebouxia decolorans (Trebouxiophyceae)

Abstract

• Premise of the study: Polymorphic microsatellite markers were developed for the symbiotic green alga Trebouxia decolorans to study fine‐scale population structure and clonal diversity. • Methods and Results: Using Illumina pyrosequencing, 20 microsatellite primer sets were developed for T. decolorans . The primer sets were tested on 43 individuals sampled from four subpopulations in Germany. The primers amplified di‐, tri‐, and tetranucleotide repeats with three to 15 alleles per locus, and the unbiased haploid diversity per locus ranged from 0.636 to 0.821. • Conclusions: The identified microsatellite markers will be useful to study the genetic diversity, dispersal, and reproductive mode of this common lichen photobiont.