Molecular analysis of genetic diversity in olive cultivars

The present study was conducted to study the genetic diversity in the available cultivars of olive flora in Pakistan. On an average, 15.5 alleles were amplified using Randomly Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) molecular primers. Mean genetic distance estimates ranged from 0.158 to 0.512 (G.D = 15.8 to 51.2%). Size of scorable fragments ranged from approximately 250 to>2000 bp. A high level of genetic dissimilarity (GD = up to 51%) was recorded among Ferugenia genotype only. Entries were grouped in clusters using cluster analysis. On the basis of dendrogram, most diverse genotypes Ferugenia and Coratina were identified, that can be used in future olive propagation program. Key words: Olive, randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) molecular primers, genetic diversity, Pakistan