Isolation and characterization of eleven microsatellite loci in the marbled rockfish, Sebastiscus marmoratus (Scorpaenidae)

The marbled rockfish, Sebastiscus marmoratus, is an important commercially near-shore fish inhabiting littoral rocky bottoms from Japan to the East China Sea. Eleven polymorphic microsatellite loci were isolated from S. marmoratus and the polymorphism of these loci was observed in 32 samples from one wild population. The number of alleles ranged from 2 to 8. The polymorphism information content ranged from 0.155 to 0.752. The levels of the observed and expected heterozygosity were 0.186–0.969 and 0.170–0.782, respectively. Only one locus (Sm3-63) deviated from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium. These microsatellite markers can provide a useful tool for further study on genetic diversity and conservation of S. marmoratus.