Corresponding author: Armando Espinosa Prieto (
Academic editor:
Aquatic environmental DNA (eDNA) studies have considerably taken off during the last 10 years, promptly establishing eDNA as a new approach to monitoring the ecological status of European surface waters. On the one hand due to the numerous biological methods based on aquatic species, on the other hand due to the development of group-specific primers that allowed discrimination between species or at least genera. Understandably, rapid achievements were made for animal groups that include a small number of species (fish, amphibians) whereas it is still in development for plants, due to the complexity of obtaining a universal barcode applicable to eDNA for the latter. Nonetheless, research in plant eDNA barcoding and metabarcoding is making significant progress, mainly expanding in the detection of plant species in freshwater ecosystems.
With a multi-barcode eDNA metabarcoding approach in mind, we are preparing a plant DNA barcode reference library for our study area, the Northern Vosges Regional Natural Park. Drawing from this experience and supported by current publications, we focus on the strong connection between metabarcoding of plant eDNA and floristic inventories, local barcode libraries, and herbaria. Prior knowledge of species distribution and abundant genetic data are the key to increasing species detection through eDNA (
Following the consensus on a combination of barcodes for the plant kingdom, the most recurrent ones in freshwater eDNA studies include the plastid DNA
Armando Espinosa Prieto
1st DNAQUA International Conference (March 9-11, 2021)