Characterization of 17 novel microsatellite loci for the brown spiny lobster Panulirus echinatus Smith, 1869 using MiSeq

Using high-throughput sequencing technology 17 polymorphic microsatellites with perfect tetra-nucleotide repeats were identified for the brown spiny lobster Panulirus echinatus Smith, 1869. Two to ten alleles were detected per locus across 30 samples analysed from the Canary Archipelago. Observed and expected heterozygosities per locus ranged between 0.100 and 0.867 and 0.095 and 0.799, respectively. No significant linkage disequilibrium was found between pairs of loci, and only one locus (Pe-L43) deviated from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, likely due to the presence of null alleles. Despite its economic importance and the threat of overfishing, population genetics studies of this species are lacking. Therefore, these 17 novel microsatellites markers will be a useful genetic resource for future conservation studies of P. echinatus.