Phylogenetic analysis among some pome fruit trees of Rosaceae family using RAPD markers

To evaluate the phylogenetic relationships among subtribe Pyrinae of Rosaceae, 50 different genotypes and cultivars of pome fruit trees were collected from various locations in Iran, and analysed using random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers. Altogether, 85 polymorphic fragments were produced by 11 random 10-mer primers. The number of produced bands varied from 4 to 12 for each primer, 7.72 on average. The lowest Jaccard's genetic similarity coefficient was scored between apple cv. ‘Akan’ and a wild Pyrus syriaca pear (0.04), and the highest similarity was observed between two genotypes of P. syriaca (0.97). Cluster analysis using the unweighted pair group method with arithmetic mean (UPGMA) properly separated the accessions and divided them into three major groups, including Malus, Pyrus, Mespilus and Crataegus. Members of Mespilus and Crataegus were further separated and formed two subgroups. Analysis of the genetic structure, using STRUCTURE and phylogenetic relationship using TreeView software confirmed the results of the UPGMA dendrogram and properly distinguished different genera. Among different genera studied in our experiment, Malus was the most distinct one and showed high genetic distance from other genera. Generally, the results from the present study provide valuable information about the genetic relationship among important pome fruit trees in Iran and indicate that, although Mespilus is genetically close to the Crataegus genus, it has relatively high similarity with Pyrus and Malus. Moreover, outcomes of this research confirmed that RAPD molecular markers are an appropriate means for evaluation of the genetic relationship among various genera of pome fruit trees