Twenty novel polymorphic microsatellite primers in the critically endangered Melastoma tetramerum var. tetramerum (Melastomataceae).
OBJECTIVE
Microsatellite markers were identified for Melastoma tetramerum var. tetramerum (Melastomataceae), a critically endangered shrub endemic to the Bonin Islands, to reveal genetic characteristics in wild and restored populations.


RESULTS
Using next-generation sequencing, 27 microsatellite markers were identified. Twenty of these markers were polymorphic in M. tetramerum var. tetramerum, with two to nine alleles per locus and expected heterozygosity ranging from 0.10 to 0.71. Among the 20 polymorphic markers, 15 were applicable to other closely related taxa, namely M. tetramerum var. pentapetalum, M. candidum var. candidum, and M. candidum var. alessandrense.


CONCLUSIONS
These markers can be potentially useful to investigate the genetic diversity, population genetic structure, and reproductive ecology of M. tetramerum var. tetramerum as well as of the three related taxa to provide appropriate genetic information for conservation.
Graduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto University, Kitashirakawa Oiwake-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8502, Japan.
Ayu
A
Narita
Graduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto University, Kitashirakawa Oiwake-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8502, Japan.
Ayako
A
Izuno
Botanical Gardens, Graduate School of Science, University of Tokyo, 3-7-1 Hakusan, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 112-0001, Japan.
Yoshiteru
Y
Komaki
Botanical Gardens, Graduate School of Science, University of Tokyo, 3-7-1 Hakusan, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 112-0001, Japan.
Takefumi
T
Tanaka
Botanical Gardens, Graduate School of Science, University of Tokyo, 3-7-1 Hakusan, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 112-0001, Japan.
Jin
J
Murata
Graduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto University, Kitashirakawa Oiwake-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8502, Japan.
Yuji
Y
Isagi
Bonin Islands; Melastoma; Melastomataceae; conservation; microsatellites; next-generation sequencing
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