ISHS Acta Horticulturae 1384: XXXI International Horticultural Congress (IHC2022): International Symposium on Conservation and Sustainable Use of Horticultural Genetic Resources
Genetic diversity of a multi-state western sand cherry (Prunus besseyi) germplasm collection |
| Author: | P. McCord |
| Keywords: | crop relatives, germplasm resources |
| DOI: | 10.17660/ActaHortic.2023.1384.38 |
| Abstract:
Western sand cherry is a Prunus species native to the Great Plains region of North America. Although it has seen little genetic improvement, it is the source of several valuable traits, such as cold hardiness, a bushy growth habit, and precocity. The USDA National Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) germplasm collection, made in 2011, was analyzed for its genetic diversity. The collection included 38 accessions collected from five states and both native and non-native habitats. Individuals in each accession were fingerprinted with 9 SSR markers. A dendrogram based on hierarchical clustering was created at the accession level for accessions with more than 5 individuals. The collection was further analyzed both as individuals and/or populations (accessions) via principal coordinate analysis (PCoA), principal component analysis (PCA), and discriminant analysis of principal components (DAPC). Hierachical clustering placed the native accessions in one main branch, though non-native accessions were also present. At the accession level, PCoA separated most native from non-native accessions. Although the structure demonstrated by PCoA was different from that shown by hierarchical clustering, both methods indicated that conservation plantings contribute a large part of the diversity of the collection. PCA of individuals showed the greatest separation along the first PC, with most individuals from wild accessions with a negative first PC. DAPC suggested that there is essentially as much diversity within accessions as there is between them. Overall, the data suggest considerable dispersion of historical collections of Prunus besseyi germplasm via orchards, windbreaks and wildlife plantings, and that these historical collections are not closely related to some of the more recent accessions collected from the wild. The NRCS collection of western sand cherry germplasm is therefore quite diverse, but could possibly benefit from additional collections from the more southern and western part of the species range. | |
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