title: Genetic diversity in populations of  Acrocomia aculeata (Arecaceae) in the northern region of Minas Gerais, Brazil.
abstract: Macaúba  (Acrocomia aculeata) is a palm of economic importance, widely distributed  in natural forests from Mexico to Uruguay. We analyzed the genetic diversity of  populations of macaúba (A. aculeata) in the northern region of the State  of Minas Gerais, Brazil. Young leaves from 10 macaúba individuals encompassing  49 genotypes of macaúba were collected from Montes Claros, Itacambira, Brasília  de Minas, Mirabela, and Grão Mogol. After extraction and amplification of  samples, the amplified fragments were separated by electrophoresis. We found  high levels of genetic diversity within the populations. Genetic diversity  indices were high, except in the Itacambira and Mirabela populations. Results  show that Mirabela and Itacambira populations can require conservation  strategies because they present lower values of genetic diversity.
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Bioprospecção e Recursos Genéticos, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biotecnologia, Departamento de Biologia Geral, Universidade Estadual de Montes Claros, Montes Claros, MG, Brasil. dario.oliveira@unimontes.br
authors.forename: D A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Oliveira
authors.forename: A F
authors.initials: AF
authors.lastname: Melo Júnior
authors.forename: M M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Brandão
authors.forename: L A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Rodrigues
authors.forename: E V
authors.initials: EV
authors.lastname: Menezes
authors.forename: P R B
authors.initials: PR
authors.lastname: Ferreira
mesh_terms: D028023:Arecaceae / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics*; D001938:Brazil; D056426:Genetic Loci; D014644:Genetic Variation; D005838:Genotype; D010802:Phylogeny