Assessment of Genetic Diversity of Edible Honeysuckle Monitored through RAPD in Relative to Bioactive Substances

Abstract

This study aimed to analyze the genetic diversity of selected cultivars and clones of Lonicera sp. (edible honeysuckle) from two countries with different climatic and soil conditions. Accordingly, the determination of total polyphenols content (TPC) and total antioxidant activity (TAA) in fruits of Lonicera sp. in 2018–2019 was performed. Applied statistical methods evaluating TPC and TAA were: correlation and regression, ANOVA, and agglomerative hierarchical clustering. The neighbor-joining method and gel images analysis (PyElph software, Pavel and Vasile, Bucharest, Romania) were used for genetic analysis. The average TPC of all cultivars and clones was 5.32 mg L−1 in the year 2018 and 3.78 mg L−1 in 2019. The average TAA values of all samples in 2018 were 8.24 mg L−1, and 9.27 mg L−1 in 2019. Statistically significant correlations between years and cultivars and clones were found. Based on the lengths and number of fragments by random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD)-PCR’s, it was found that ‘clone 5’ and ‘clone 7’ were genetically close to the grown cultivars from the Czech Republic. Therefore, edible honeysuckle fruits are a valuable source of important nutrients for the human body and its health.