Isolation and characterization of 13 microsatellite loci in the pen shell Atrina pectinata (Bivalvia: Pinnidae)

The pen shell Atrina pectinata is a commercially important and over-exploited bivalve. In this survey, the first set of 13 polymorphic microsatellite loci for the pen shell was developed and characterized. The number of alleles ranged from 6 to 28 per locus with the observed and expected heterozygosities ranging from 0.640 to 1.000 and from 0.731 to 0.970, respectively. These informative microsatellite markers will be useful in studies of population and conservation genetics for this species.