AFLP markers for the assessment of genetic diversity in european and North American potato varieties cultivated in Iran

Information about the genetic diversity of potato germplasm in Iran is important for variety identification and to enhance the classification of germplasm collections and exploit them in breeding programs and for the development and introduction of new varieties. AFLP fingerprinting was applied to a group of cultivated potato varieties to find if there is any geographical differentiation in potato diversity from Europe and North America. The high level of polymorphism within potato varieties and the high number of variety-specific bands suggest that AFLPs are powerful markers for diversity analysis in potato varieties. No region-specific AFLP markers were found (present in varieties from the same origin and absent in others). The UPGMA dendrogram revealed four distinct clusters corresponding almost to the geographical origin of the varieties. However, the bootstrap support for branches was rather weak. No clusters clearly distinguished varieties from Europe and North America. Varieties from the same geographical origins however tended to group together within each cluster. The mean similarity and the UPGMA dendrogram both suggest that North American varieties have nearly identical genetic diversity to European varieties. The results of AMOVA revealed large within-region variations which accounted for 94.5% of the total molecular variance. The between-region variation, although accounting for only 5.5% of the total variation, was statistically significant. AFLP technology was successfully used to evaluate diversity between different geographical groups of potatoes and is recommended for potato genetic studies.