DNA is the instruction manual for all life, each species has its own unique sequence. It is found in every cell in the body of an organism and also in other bodily fluids such as blood, saliva and urine. In recent years, researchers have developed new techniques for detecting very small amounts of DNA, called environmental DNA or eDNA. Thanks to this eDNA, biologists have now been able to detect insects in dried plants for the first time. As researchers from the University of Trier report in the journal Biology Letters, in a new study they detected the environmental DNA of hundreds of arthropod species – namely arthropods such as butterflies or mosquitoes – in a regular tea bag.
The dust could collect DNA from parts of the tea field
“What really surprised me was the great diversity we found. .[….] We got a tea bag and […] I think it was 100 [oder] 150 milligrams of dried plant material from which we extracted DNA, “said Henrik Krehenwinkel of the University of Trier in an interview with the online magazine The Scientist.
“And we found up to 400 species of insects in a single tea bag in green tea. This really surprised me. The reason for this is probably that this tea is ground into a relatively fine powder. This is how eDNA is. [aus allen Teilen des Teefeldes] distributed. “
The research leader stays with the coffee
The eDNA approach has many advantages for species researchers over traditional methods such as camera traps. Firstly, it is non-invasive and does not disturb the examined animals. Secondly, it can detect rare or elusive species and therefore difficult to observe directly. Finally, environmental DNA can be collected relatively cheaply and easily, making it ideal for large-scale monitoring projects. Thanks to these advantages, eDNA could continue to become an indispensable tool for biologists. It is not known whether they consume less tea after their studies.
“I actually drink coffee. […] And I’m afraid the coffee probably doesn’t lend itself well to this because the coffee is roasted. And what DNA really doesn’t like is being heated to a very high temperature for a long time, “explains Krehwinkel.” We haven’t tried it yet, but I’m afraid coffee is probably not the best choice for this type of experiment. “
Image by Rudy and Peter Skitterians from Pixabay
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