title: Development of microsatellite markers for the medicinal plant Isodon rubescens (Lamiaceae) and related species.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Microsatellite markers were developed for the medicinal plant Isodon rubescens to investigate genetic variability of the species and, in future studies, to assess its relation to the content of pharmacologically active chemicals produced by the plant.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Eleven primer pairs were identified and tested in multiple populations of I. rubescens and related species (I. henryi, I. enanderianus, I. lophanthoides) from the People's Republic of China. The primers amplified dinucleotide repeats and had between two and 12 alleles per locus in a given population.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These microsatellites will be useful for understanding patterns of phytochemical variation in I. rubescens and have the potential to be applied to research on evolutionary processes in other species of the genus Isodon.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA. eric.sj.harris@gmail.com
authors.forename: Eric S J
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Harris
authors.forename: Matthew R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Klooster
mesh_terms: D005820:Genetic Testing; D005828:Genetics, Population; D037602:Isodon / Q000235:genetics*; D018895:Microsatellite Repeats / Q000235:genetics*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010946:Plants, Medicinal / Q000235:genetics*; D013045:Species Specificity