Genetic diversity of giant reed (A rundo donax) in Australia
Malone, Jenna M. | Virtue, John G. | Williams, Chris | Preston, Christopher
The perennial grass, Arundo donax, has shown potential as a promising biomass crop. However, it has become invasive in a number of areas and declared a noxious weed in some jurisdictions, making proposals to grow A. donax for commercial use in Australia controversial. Evidence of asexual reproduction and the presence of a single genetic clone in Australia was investigated, as such characteristics would indicate a limited risk of escape and invasion. Using amplified fragment length polymorphism markers, the genetic diversity of 218 A. donax samples from across Australia was examined. The samples were found to separate into two distinct genetic groups, or clades. There was only a small amount of genetic diversity within a clade (0.9 and 1.5%). However, there was a larger difference between the clades of 19.8%, suggesting the presence of two distinct A. donax genotypes in Australia. The low level of genetic variation in Australian A. donax that was found in this study indicates that spread is essentially by vegetative means and suggests that if grown in areas where it is separated from natural water dispersal events, A. donax poses a low risk of becoming invasive.
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