Characterization of grapevine (V. vinifera L.) varieties grown in Yozgat province (Turkey) by simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers

The study was conducted to characterise 50 grape varieties grown in Yozgat by molecular methods. Molecular definitions were realized using 9 simple sequence repeat (SSR) primers (VVS2, VVMD5, VVMD7, VVMD24, VVMD27, VVMD28, VVMD31, VrZAG62, and VrZAG79), including six microsatellite loci used for grapevine variety collections by the European Union funded project (GENRES 081), accepted as the minimum standard set (core set) by the world. According to the SSR analysis results, 451 alleles, 233 of which polymorphic, were obtained. The highest allele numbers were designated as 52 in the VVMD7, VVMD24, VVMD27, VrZAG62, and VrZAG79 loci. The mean number of alleles was recorded as 50.11 (+/- 1.306), while the average number of polymorphic alleles was 25.89 (+/- 1.896). The VVMD28 primer gave the highest number of polymorphic alleles (Na=36). The mean of the expected heterozygosity (He) value was calculated as 0.932 (+/- 0.005), while the average of observed heterozygosity (Ho) value was 0.481 (+/- 0.082). Polymorphism information content (PIC) values ranged from 0.908 (VVMD31) to 0.955 (VVMD28) with a mean PIC value of 0.927. The unweighted pair group method with arithmetic average (UPGMA) clustering technique was used to generate the dendrogram. Population structure analysis results showed that by compatible phylogenetic analysis, the varieties depicted into 2 main clusters. The genetic similarity rate among the varieties changed to ranging from 0% to 50%. The highest genetic similarity coefficient with a 0.50 was found between Horoz uzumu and Karagevrek.

Automated summary

The study characterized 50 grape varieties grown in Yozgat using molecular methods and SSR analysis, revealing a high level of diversity in alleles and genetic characteristics. Cluster analysis showed that these grape varieties can be grouped into 2 main clusters, with varying genetic similarity rates among them.