Morphological and Molecular Variation in a Collection of Eggplants from a Secondary Center of Diversity: Implications for Conservation and Breeding

Abstract

Eggplant (Solanum melongena L.) was introduced by the Arabs into Spain. Since then, many local cultivars have arisen. These materials are grouped in four cultivar groups: “round,” “semi-long,” “long,” and “listada de Gandía.” We studied the morphological and molecular [amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP)] diversity of a collection of 28 Spanish traditional cultivars of eggplant. Four eggplant accessions from different origins were used as controls and three scarlet eggplant (Solanum aethiopicum L.) accessions as outgroups. Morphology and AFLP markers showed that S. melongena and S. aethiopicum are separate taxonomic entities, and that, compared to controls, Spanish eggplants are very variable, indicating that the Iberian Peninsula can be regarded as a secondary center of diversity. Morphological differences were found among cultivar groups in traits other than those used for the grouping although, in some cases, accessions from different cultivar groups shared a similar general morphology. Eggplant cultivar groups also showed some genetic differences, which are revealed in the gene diversity statistics (GST = 0.30). Nonetheless, no individual AFLP markers specific and universal to one cultivar group could be found. “Round” cultivars were genetically more diverse than the other cultivar groups. A positive correlation (r = 0.68) was found between morphological and molecular distances. However, correlations between geographical and either morphological or molecular distances were low. Results suggest that evolution of eggplants in Spain has involved frequent hybridizations and a frequent movement and exchange of seeds. Structure of diversity among regions indicates that most of the diversity can be collected in single selected regions. All these results have important implications in eggplant germplasm conservation and breeding.