Assessment of the Genetic Diversity of Almond (Prunus dulcis) Using Microsatellite Markers and Morphological Traits

Abstract

The genetic diversity among 56 almond (Prunus dulcis) genotypes was analysed using 35 microsatellite markers and 14 morphological traits. Analysis of morphological traits revealed a wide range of variation among the studied genotypes. Out of 35 simple sequence repeats (SSRs) markers, 25 were polymorphic, producing 215 alleles that varied from 2 to 16 with an average of 8.76 alleles per locus. Regression analyses revealed a positive correlation between the CPPCT03 locus and kernel yield, kernel percentage, grain weight, leaf length and tree altitude. The results of analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) indicated that approximately 4.5% of genetic variance was observed between the collection sites. Based on SSR data, cluster analyses showed that the studied almond genotypes were classified into five main groups. The results of the present study showed that microsatellite markers could be successfully used to assay genetic diversity among Iranian almond landraces/cultivars and to identify informative markers for improving traits in breeding programs.