Characterization of 21 microsatellite loci for the precocious, grass-shrimp trematode Alloglossidium renale

We developed microsatellite markers to use in studying the population genetics of the trematode Alloglossidium renale, a fluke with a precocious life cycle where sexual maturation occurs in a grass shrimp. Among 21 tested loci in a Mississippi population sample, 14 were polymorphic, 12 of which significantly deviated from Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium (HWE). We estimated identity disequilibrium (ID) to confirm whether the deviations from HWE were due to significant amounts of selfing or due to technical factors. The selfing rate derived from F_IS was 86.6%, whereas the selfing rate obtained by ID was 83.9%, indicating that the deviation in HWE was due to a high amount of selfing within the population. These markers will be useful for ecological and evolutionary studies of A. renale especially in relation to the interplay of hermaphroditic mating systems, inbreeding depression, and transmission dynamics.