Using miniaturized laboratory equipment and DNA barcoding to improve conservation genetics training and identify illegally traded species

Illegal wildlife trade (IWT) is one of the largest global illegal activities, and it negatively affects biodiversity and sustainable development worldwide. DNA barcoding coupled with high-throughput sequencing (i.e., metabarcoding) is useful in identifying taxa affected by IWT and has been used routinely for decades. However, for countries lacking laboratory infrastructure, sequencing units, and trained staff, the application of DNA barcoding tools in conservation is limited and depends on slow sample transport processes and molecular analyses carried out abroad. Guinea-Bissau, on the West African coast, has one of the lowest human development indices in the world and is a biodiversity hotspot threatened by IWT. We explored the potential use of inexpensive and portable miniaturized laboratory equipment (MLE) and DNA barcoding tools to improve training in conservation genetics and identification of traded species. We tested these technologies in tissue samples collected at different times and contexts in Guinea-Bissau and used 3 primer pairs amplifying mitochondrial DNA fragments. We successfully identified 33 tissue samples to the species level; thus, MLE may accelerate the use of DNA and metabarcoding methods in countries that have low research funding and limited infrastructure. The use of these technologies has the potential to advance the discipline of conservation genetics in Guinea-Bissau and other countries and to train students and employees of government agencies dedicated to investigating environmental crimes.