Isolation and amplification of mangrove plants using DNA barcode in Percut Sei Tuan, North Sumatra, Indonesia

Mangroves are a collection of several species of trees or shrubs that distribute around the coastline and can survive in high salinity environments. Around 60% of mangrove forests in North Sumatra are reported to have been damaged, the main factors of this damage being the mangrove forests conversion into ponds and the expansion of oil palm plantations. Identification of mangrove species is very important in protecting and applying the biodiversity of mangrove forests. Identification of living things has evolved from morphological charcetrization to molecular identification. This study aims to explain the DNA isolation and PCR methods to identify mangrove species in North Sumatra. The results suggested that the rbcL primer used can detect mangrove species that were visualized in the form of DNA bands. The length of DNA fragments of mangrove species Acrosticum aureum ranged 632.0-619.6 bp, species Rhizophora apiculata 619.6-585.8 bp, species Nypa fruticans 600- 592.9 bp, species Avicennia alba 549.1-533.5 bp, species Hibiscus tiliaceus was not detected, and mangrove species Acanthus ilicifolius 480.3 bp.