ISHS Acta Horticulturae 811: VI International Congress on Cactus Pear and Cochineal
GENETIC DIVERSITY IN CACTUS CLONES USING ISSR MARKERS |
| Authors: | T. Souto Alves, M. Vanusa da Silva, C.M. Alves de Almeida, D. Oliveira Jordão do Amaral, D. Cordeiro dos Santos, I. Farias, V.M. Tenório Sabino Donato, A.F. da Costa |
| Keywords: | Opuntia fícus-indica, cactus, molecular characterization, genetic variability, plant breeding |
| Abstract:
Prickly pear or cactus pear (Opuntia ficus-indica) is a commonly used cactus plant in Northeastern Brazil, mainly as cattle feed. It is of utmost importance to analyze the genetic variability for germplasm conservation and characterization and to group the genotypes for a more adequate management and optimized use of collections. This study aimed to evaluate the level of genetic diversity in cactus clones by molecular markers to gather information for future breeding programs of the crop. Eleven clones of the Breeding program of Empresa Pernambucana de Pesquisa Agropecuária – IPA, state of Pernambuco, Brazil, were evaluated by ISSR (Inter Simple Sequence Repeat) markers. Of these, 52 primers were used and 12 selected for their high repeatability and polymorphism level. A total of 175 polymorphic bands was produced, i.e., on average 14 bands per primer. Average linkage (UPGMA) clustering revealed low genetic diversity in the cactus pear clones, suggesting that the genetic differences between them are minimal. The ISSR markers however obtained useful results for the identification of polymorphisms and of cultivar-specific markers in cactus pear. | |
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