Evaluation and optimization of DNA extraction methods for benthic foraminifera from the Gulf of Kachchh, Gujarat, India

India has a vast coastline of 7460 km and prolific presence of foraminifers which are significant paleoclimatic proxies. However, no research has been carried out to extract genomic DNA from foraminifer and sequencing it for DNA barcoding. To initiate molecular study on benthic foraminifers from the Gulf of Kachchh, India, we tested out various kits based protocols and extract the foraminiferal DNA from Ammonia sp. Though most of the earlier methods yielded moderate amount of mean genomic DNA yield (0.87-9.07 ng/mu L) they failed to amplify the DNA. Possibly, this is the first attempt in India wherein standardization of foraminiferal DNA extraction and PCR amplification is performed. This standardized protocol (modified protocol) yielded the highest quantity of mean genomic' DNA yield (28.41 ng/mu L) and its PCR amplification was also successful.