Abstract

Genetic relatedness and diversity in 32 almond genotypes were analysed using random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers. All the genotypes maintained at Dr. Y.S. Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Solan, India comprised ten exotic introductions and 22 indigenous selections. Using 16 selected 10-mer primers, 87 bands were generated and all the bands were recorded to be polymorphic. The RAPD primers namely S073 (CCAGATGCAC) and S081 (TCGCCAGCCA) gave maximum and minimum number of polymorphic bands, respectively. Cluster analysis of all the genotypes was performed based on data from polymorphic bands using Jaccard’s similarity coefficient and unweighted pair group method with arithmetic mean (UPGMA) clustering method. The highest and lowest similarities detected between genotypes were 0.667 and 0.000, respectively. Average polymorphic information content (PIC) value of 16 selected primers was 0.684 and maximum and minimum PIC value was 0.8687 and 0.2551 for primers S073 and S081, respectively. Cophenetic correlation was found to be 0.89. RAPD data on genetic diversity matched classification of studied genotypes based on morphological and geographical traits.

Key words: Prunus dulcis, genetic diversity, accessions, DNA isolation, cetyl trimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB), random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) marker, polymorphic information content (PIC) value.

Abbreviation

Abbreviations: CTAB, Cetyl trimethyl ammonium bromide; NTSYS-pc, numerical taxonomy and multivariate analysis system; PIC, polymorphic information content;RAPD, random amplified polymorphic DNA; IPRs, intellectual property rights.