Steen W. Knudsen, researcher at NIVA Denmark, has led a team of experts in the development of a revised version of the technical guidelines originally created for the Danish Environmental Protection Agency (Miljøstyrelsen) (note from 2017 and technical guidelines from 2018), with the most recent update in January 2020. The revised technical guidelines provide a detailed protocol on how environmental DNA (eDNA) can be collected, stored, purified, and detected. The guidelines are divided into three sections: (1) water collection and filtration, including instructions for the subsequent storage of filter units, (2) extraction of eDNA from filter units, and (3) detection of eDNA using PCR, which can quantify the number of DNA molecules extracted from the filter sample. The last section on quantitative detection requires the development and testing of species-specific primers and probes to accurately trace eDNA originating exclusively from the relevant non-indigenous species.

The revised technical guidelines have been developed as part of the MONIS projects, initiated and funded by the Danish Environmental Protection Agency.

The full report can be accessed here.

For further inquiries regarding the report, please contact researcher Steen W. Knudsen at steen.knudsen@niva-dk.dk.