Population data for 12 STR loci in Northern European brown bear (Ursus arctos) and application of DNA profiles for forensic casework

Abstract The development of wildlife genetics combined with non-invasive sampling might be both an economic benefit for the society and a benefit for the survival of the threatened species. The aims of this study are to develop a quality assured approach for DNA profiling of brown bears ( Ursus arctos ) in Northern Europe using material from non-invasive sampling and to generate a population database that can be used for conservation management as well as a reference database for forensic purposes. Non-invasive sampling was performed by the collection of scats in the field and by using sets of hair traps in a grid pattern in specified geographical areas. Genotypes from 12 STR loci were determined for 232 Norwegian bears. Initial analysis of the entire sample indicated a high level of substructure. Thus, the sample was divided into four geographically different populations consisting of 206 individuals for further validation of the markers. Ten STRs (G1D, G10L, Mu05, Mu09, Mu10, Mu15, Mu23, Mu50, Mu51, and Mu59) conformed to Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium (HWE) expectations with only minor deviations, while the remaining two STR loci (Mu26 and G10B) were excluded from our set of putative forensic profiling system markers after revealing significant deviations from HWE in all four sub-populations. The average estimate of population substructure for Norwegian bears using 10 STRs ( F ST ) was determined to be 0.1, while the estimate for inbreeding ( F IS ) was −0.02. Accounting for the F ST -value, the average probability of identity (PI ave ) was 5.67×10 −10 and the average probability of sibling identity (PI sib ) was 1.68×10 −4 . In Norway, this brown bear DNA profiling system has been applied to forensic casework.