Suitability of AFLP and Microsatellite Marker Analysis for Discriminating Intraclonal Variants of the Potato Cultivar Russet Norkotah

Abstract

The objective of this study was to differentiate six intraclonal variants of the potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) cultivar Russet Norkotah. One-hundred-twelve AFLP primer combinations producing 3755 bands and 79 microsatellite primers producing over 400 bands failed to identify any reproducible polymorphisms among the intraclonal variants and `Russet Norkotah'. The inability to detect differences between clones underscores the degree of genetic similarity between them, despite differences in phenotypic expression. This inability could be due to the tetraploid nature of the clones and/or to epigenetic differences not detected by the utilized procedures.