Chinook Salmon Run-Type SHERLOCK Assay

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Background and Significance

In the Central Valley of California, four run types of Chinook salmon co-occur. Two of these four run types are federally listed; winter run are endangered and spring run are threatened, therefore, distinguishing between run-types accurately and quickly is important for their conservation management. 

Results

In partnership with the Department of Water Resources, we developed four SHERLOCK (CRISPR-Cas13a) assays to genetically identify the four run types of Chinook salmon in the Central Valley of California. In combination, these assays are accurate (94-98% concordance between genotypic and phenotypic assignment), sensitive (detect down to 1-10 molecular copies per reaction), and rapid (detection results in less than 1 hour).