Multiplexed microsatellite markers for seven Metarhizium species

Cross-species transferability of 41 previously published simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers was assessed for 11 species of the entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium. A collection of 65 Metarhizium strains including all 54 used in a recent phylogenetic revision of the genus were characterized. Between 15 and 34 polymorphic SSR markers produced scorable PCR amplicons in seven species, including M. anisopliae, M. brunneum, M. guizhouense, M. lepidiotae, M. majus, M. pingshaense, and M. robertsii. To provide genotyping tools for concurrent analysis of these seven species fifteen markers grouped in five multiplex pools were selected based on high allelic diversity and easy scorability of SSR chromatograms.