Identification of genetic diversity in wild pear (Pyrus elaeagrifolia Pall.) genotypes collected from different regions of turkey with SSR marker system

Abstract

Turkey with diverse ecologies is among the unique countries in terms of plant species and diversity. Among these plant species, naturally growing wild pears (Pyrus elaeagrifolia Pall.) are resistant to chlorosis and drought and could be used in rootstock development programs. In present study, genetic diversity in 96 wild pear genotypes collected from 11 different provinces (Kayseri, Ankara, Kahramanmara?, Adana, Nev?ehir, Konya, Isparta, Denizli, U?ak, Afyonkarahisar, Eski?ehir) and regions of Turkey through selection was investigated with the use of SSR (Simple Sequence Repeat) molecular marker system. Present analyses carried out in ABI (Applied Biosystem) 3500 capillary electrophoresis system revealed 93 scorable and all polymorphic bands, thus polymorphism rate was 100%. In UPGMA (Unweighted pair group method with arithmetic mean) dendrogram of wild pear genotypes, similarity index values varied between 0.20-0.83 and a large variation was observed among the genotypes. Present finding may have significant contributions to further studies to be conducted for preservation of gene sources and breeding of wild pear genotypes.