title: Population structure and genotypic variation of Crataegus pontica inferred by molecular markers.
abstract: Information about the natural patterns of genetic variability and their evolutionary bases are of fundamental practical importance for sustainable forest management and conservation. In the present study, the genetic diversity of 164 individuals from fourteen natural populations of Crataegus pontica K.Koch was assessed for the first time using three genome-based molecular techniques; inter-retrotransposon amplified polymorphism (IRAP); inter-simple sequence repeats (ISSR) and start codon targeted (SCoT) polymorphism. IRAP, ISSR and SCoT analyses yielded 126, 254 and 199 scorable amplified bands, respectively, of which 90.48, 93.37 and 83.78% were polymorphic. ISSR revealed efficiency over IRAP and SCoT due to high effective multiplex ratio, marker index and resolving power. The dendrograms based on the markers used and combined data divided individuals into three major clusters. The correlation between the coefficient matrices for the IRAP, ISSR and SCoT data was significant. A higher level of genetic variation was observed within populations than among populations based on the markers used. The lower divergence levels depicted among the studied populations could be seen as evidence of gene flow. The promotion of gene exchange will be very beneficial to conserve and utilize the enormous genetic variability.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Forest Tree Biology and Biotechnology, Department of Forestry, Faculty of Natural Resources, University of Kurdistan, Khanagah Campus, Sanandaj 66177-1-5175, Iran; The Center for Research and Development of North-Zagros Forests, University of Kurdistan, Saghez Blvd., Baneh, Kurdistan 66919-1-4919, Iran. Electronic address: m.rahmani@uok.ac.ir.
authors.forename: Mohammad-Shafie
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Rahmani
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Forest Tree Biology and Biotechnology, Department of Forestry, Faculty of Natural Resources, University of Kurdistan, Khanagah Campus, Sanandaj 66177-1-5175, Iran; The Center for Research and Development of North-Zagros Forests, University of Kurdistan, Saghez Blvd., Baneh, Kurdistan 66919-1-4919, Iran.
authors.forename: Naghi
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Shabanian
authors.affiliation: Department of Horticultural Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Arak University, 38156-8-8349 Arak, Iran. Electronic address: a-khadivi@araku.ac.ir.
authors.forename: Abdollah
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Khadivi-Khub
authors.affiliation: USDA Forest Service, Hardwood Tree Improvement and Regeneration Center (HTIRC), Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, Purdue University, 715 West State Street, West Lafayette, IN 47907-2061, United States.
authors.forename: Keith E
authors.initials: KE
authors.lastname: Woeste
authors.affiliation: Department of Plant Breeding, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Kurdistan, Khanagah Campus, Sanandaj 66177-1-5175, Iran.
authors.forename: Hedieh
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Badakhshan
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Forest Tree Biology and Biotechnology, Department of Forestry, Faculty of Natural Resources, University of Kurdistan, Khanagah Campus, Sanandaj 66177-1-5175, Iran.
authors.forename: Leila
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Alikhani
mesh_terms: D018387:Codon, Initiator; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources; D027825:Crataegus / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics*; D018744:DNA, Plant / Q000235:genetics; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D051456:Gene Flow; D005819:Genetic Markers; D014644:Genetic Variation; D005828:Genetics, Population; D018745:Genome, Plant; D007492:Iran; D018895:Microsatellite Repeats; D010802:Phylogeny; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D018626:Retroelements
chemical_list: D018387:Codon, Initiator; D018744:DNA, Plant; D005819:Genetic Markers; D018626:Retroelements
keywords: Crataegus; Forest genetics; Genetic diversity; Germplasm conservation; Molecular polymorphism; Population variability