Genetic diversity of Indian sapota (Manilkara zapota) cultivars characterized by RAPD markers
2005
Meghala, R. (Indian Institute of Horticultural Research, Bangalore (India). Division of Fruit Crops) | Ravishankar, K.V. | Anand, L. | Rekha, A.
Sapota (Manilkara zapota), also known as sapodilla or chiku, belonging to the Sapotaceae, is a popular commercial fruit crop in the tropics. Sapota has been grown widely for chicle (the basis of chewing gum) and fruit. It is native to Central America and was later introduced to Asian countries via the Philippines. In India, sapota is grown for its fruit, mainly in southern and central parts of the country. There is no information available on the number of introductions and genetic diversity of sapota cultivars in India. The present study is an attempt to examine genetic relatedness and assess diversity among Indian sapota cultivars using random amplification of polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers. Twenty sapota cultivars widely grown in different regions of India were used. Twenty decamer random primers amplified 232 RAPD markers of which 184 were polymorphic. Cluster analysis based on Ward's minimum variance algorithm showed two major groups. Both cluster analysis and principal components analysis of the RAPD data indicated wide genetic diversity among the cultivars. Despite its recent introduction to India, sapota germplasm appears to have a wide variation, possibly because the open-pollination nature of crop results in high heterozygosity, or because a good number of cultivars were introduced, or both
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