Ribulose-1, 5-Bisphosphate Carboxylase/Oxygenase Gene Sequencing in Taxonomic Delineation of Padina Species in the Northern Coast of the Persian Gulf, (IRAN).

Taxonomic study of the genus Padina (Dictyotales, Phaeophyceae) from the Persian Gulf coast was conducted based on morphology and molecular phylogenetic analyses using chloroplast encoded large subunit RuBisCo (rbcL) gene sequences. Detailed descriptions of each species found in this study are described. Several morphological characters, such as number of cell layers composing the thallus, presence or absence and degree of calcification, presence or absence of small groups of rhizoid-like hairs, structure, position and arrangement of hairlines, presence or absence of indusium and reproductive sori, are considered to be reliable morphological characters for species delineation. In this study, it was realized there were 12 new sequences among the samples examined and as such, based on the rbcL sequences, four species could be tentatively delineated along the Persian Gulf coast: Padina sp.FA, Padina sp.PG, Padina sp. INDEGR032 and Dictyota ciliolate Sonder ex Kützing 1859. Further work is required to complete description of new species based on morphology and molecular analyses.