Determination of taxonomic location of the Alocasia sp. sample collected in Xuan Son (Phu Tho province) based on analysis results of genes matK, petD and trnY-trnE

Abstract

The paper analysed the difference between the sample of Alocasia sp. 87 recently collected from Phu Tho province of Vietnam and the samples of Alocasia species and related genera based on nucleotide sequence analysis of matK, petD, and trnY-trnE gene regions. The results showed that the studied sample was similar 98% to Alocasia genus, and 93% to Cocolasia genus. The results of matK genomic region analysis also recorded that the sample of Alocasia sp. 87 was separated from the known species of Alocasia genus. For the petD gene region, the sample of Alocasia sp. 87 was similar to the group of the genera Alocasia and Leucocasia; however, it seems to separate into a different branch. The authors suspect that Alocasia sp. 87 could be a new species.