title: Genetic variation of the endangered Gentiana lutea L. var. aurantiaca (Gentianaceae) in populations from the Northwest Iberian Peninsula.
abstract: Gentiana lutea L. (G. lutea L.) is an endangered plant, patchily distributed along the mountains of Central and Southern Europe. In this study, inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR) markers were used to investigate the genetic variation in this species within and among populations of G. lutea L. var. aurantiaca of the Cantabrian Mountains (Northwest Iberian Peninsula). Samples of G. lutea L. collected at different locations of the Pyrenees and samples of G. lutea L. subsp. vardjanii of the Dolomites Alps were also analyzed for comparison. Using nine ISSR primers, 106 bands were generated, and 89.6% of those were polymorphic. The populations from the Northwest Iberian Peninsula were clustered in three different groups, with a significant correlation between genetic and geographic distances. Gentiana lutea L. var. aurantiaca showed 19.8% private loci and demonstrated a remarkable level of genetic variation, both among populations and within populations; those populations with the highest level of isolation show the lowest genetic variation within populations. The low number of individuals, as well as the observed genetic structure of the analyzed populations makes it necessary to protect them to ensure their survival before they are too small to persist naturally.
authors.affiliation: Department of Agrarian Engineering and Sciences, Natural Resources Institute, University of León, Av. Portugal 41, 24071 León, Spain. ogonl@unileon.es.
authors.forename: Oscar
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: González-López
authors.affiliation: Genetics Lab, Department of Molecular Biology, University of León, Campus de Vegazana, 24071 León, Spain. carlos.polanco@unileon.es.
authors.forename: Carlos
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Polanco
authors.affiliation: Department of Genetics and Plant Breeding, Corvinus University of Budapest, Ménesi Street, H-1118 Budapest, Hungary. zsuzsanna.gyorgy@uni-corvinus.hu.
authors.forename: Zsuzsanna
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: György
authors.affiliation: Department of Genetics and Plant Breeding, Corvinus University of Budapest, Ménesi Street, H-1118 Budapest, Hungary. andrzej.pedryc@uni-corvinus.hu.
authors.forename: Andrzej
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pedryc
authors.affiliation: Department of Agrarian Engineering and Sciences, Natural Resources Institute, University of León, Av. Portugal 41, 24071 León, Spain. pedro-casquero@unileon.es.
authors.forename: Pedro A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Casquero
mesh_terms: D018744:DNA, Plant / Q000235:genetics; D056727:Endangered Species; D014644:Genetic Variation; D030012:Gentiana / Q000235:genetics*; D018895:Microsatellite Repeats; D010802:Phylogeny; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D013030:Spain
chemical_list: D018744:DNA, Plant