Genetic Diversity and Relationship of Ethiopian Potato Varieties to Germplasm from North America, Europe and the International Potato Center

Potato is an increasingly important crop in Ethiopia, but the origin of local cultivars grown throughout the country is unknown. To evaluate the genetic diversity of Ethiopian potato cultivars, and to assess their relationship with germplasm from North America, Europe and the International Potato Center (CIP), 8303 SNP markers were used to characterize 44 local Ethiopian cultivars, as well as 26 CIP, 22 American and 17 European potato cultivars and advanced breeding clones. The marker data revealed that most of the local cultivars were duplicates; among the 44 cultivars tested, only 15 unique genotypes were observed. Principal component and neighbor-joining dendrogram analyses showed that American, European and CIP germplasm form three distinct clusters, with older Ethiopian cultivars overlapping the European cultivars, suggesting that the oldest local cultivars are of European descent. Local cultivars overall separated into two distinct clusters, suggesting that at least two distinct introductions gave rise to current local cultivars in Ethiopia. Ethiopian germplasm harbors comparable levels of genetic diversity to American, European, and CIP germplasm and could provide the foundation for a national potato breeding program.