The present investigation aims to study the genetic relatedness among the coldwater fish species and construction of phylogenetic relationships among them. Eleven random primers were employed to screen for RAPD markers in the most commonly available coldwater fish species of Uttarkhand region, viz., Tor putitora, Schizothorax richadrsonii, Raiamas bola and Garra species. The sizes of the amplified products were from 200 to 5,000 bp in all the fish species with all the primers employed. Total 188 bands were scored with the 11 primers employed, with the average numbers of bands scored being 3.54 ± 0.72, 5.18 ± 0.69, 3.64 ± 0.58 and 4.73 ± 0.78 in Tor putitora, S. richadrsonii, R. bola and Garra species respectively. The maximum numbers of scorable bands were obtained with primer OPA-03 primer in Tor putitora (08 ± 0.71), Schizothorax richadrsonii (08 ± 0.71), Raiamas bola (07 ± 0.71) and Garra species (05 ± 0.71), and minimum numbers (1 to 3) of amplified fragments were observed with primer OPA 05. Higher proportion of polymorphic bands were produced by OPY02 (7.5%) and NUSZG4 (5.75%) primers among these fish species. The highest genetic distances were observed between T. putitora and R. bola (0.60), followed by T. putitora with Garra species (0.52), and the least genetic distance was observed between the S. richardsonii and Garra species (0.36), followed by T. putitora and S. richardsonii (0.43). The phylogenic tree was constructed using TDRAW V1.4 software package, which revealed the T. putitora with S. richardsonii and Garra species with R. bola forming a separate monophyly.

In Uttarakhand Himalayas, mainly in the Kumaon region, four species of fishes are considered to be of commercial importance, viz., T. putitora, S. richardsonii, B. bendelisis and Garra species. Genetic variability in fishes has been proved valuable for aquaculture and fisheries management, identification of stocks, selective breeding programs, restoration of ecology and estimating genetic contributions in stock. Thorough knowledge of genetic variability within the species is considered a prerequisite for efficient utilization of biological resources. Generally, individuals with greater genetic variability have higher growth rate, developmental stability, viability, fecundity, resistance to diseases and environmental stress. To manage any biological resources effectively, the researcher must identify the level of genetic variation within and among populations.

The Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) marker consists of relatively short fragment amplified via PCR by random (10 mer) arbitrary primers (Grosberg et al., 1996). Very few studies have been carried out in coldwater fish species using RAPD markers for assessing the genetic relatedness and polymorphic study. Kapila and Mishra (2006) have observed 69 polymorphic loci, out of 98 RAPD loci studied in Schizothorax richardsonii. Barat et al. (2008) have studied the genetic diversity among Mahseer population from NE and NW Himalayan region by using 10 random primers and found higher polymorphic loci (62.20%) in NW Uttarakhand population than in NE Arunachal Pradesh (49.00%) and both the populations were in single cluster. The present study is carried out for the estimation of genetic diversity, genetic polymorphism and phylogenetic relationships among the commonly found coldwater fish species of cyprinid family, viz., Schizothorax richardsonii, Tor putitora, Raiamas bola and Garra spp in the Kumaon region of Uttarakhand.

Genetics & Evolution Journal, Indian Coldwater Fishes, Fisheries Management, Aquaculture Management, Breeding Programs, Biological Resources, Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA, RAPD, Coldwater Fish Species, Genetic Polymorphism, Genetic Diversity.