Minibarcode
Definition
A 100-200 bp sub-region of the COI locus amplified when DNA is too degraded for the full 648 bp amplicon. Shorter target length improves recovery from heat-treated, dried, or formalin-fixed material.
- Length
- 100 to 200 bp
- Target
- Sub-region of the COI locus
- Full COI length
- 648 bp
- Use case
- Heat-treated, dried, or formalin-fixed material
Common questions
How is this different from the mini-barcode used for shark and ray tissue?+
Both apply the same shortened-target logic to the COI gene, but this term covers the general species-identification use across degraded material broadly, including cooked or formalin-preserved specimens, rather than being specific to fin or cartilage tissue from elasmobranchs.
Why does formalin fixation degrade DNA so severely?+
Formalin cross-links proteins and nucleic acids and causes fragmentation and chemical modification of DNA over time, so tissue preserved this way, especially older specimens, often yields only short, damaged fragments that a full-length barcode cannot amplify.
Related terms
- BOLD Systems
- Barcode of Life Data System (University of Guelph, Canada). Holds over 9 million COI reference barcodes linked to voucher specimens, with mandatory...
- COI (Cytochrome C Oxidase Subunit I)
- The 648 bp mitochondrial gene region proposed by Paul Hebert in 2003 as the universal barcode locus. Its combination of interspecific variation...
- DNA Barcode
- A short, standardised sequence from a defined locus used to identify a specimen to species by comparison against a curated reference library....
- ElePhant Database
- A curated STR reference database for African savanna and forest elephants and Asian elephants, used to assign ivory to individual animals or...
- STR (Short Tandem Repeat)
- A genomic locus where a 2, 7 base-pair unit is repeated in tandem a variable number of times between individuals. The variation...