Characterization of quince (Cydonia oblonga mill.) accessions by simple sequence repeat markers

In Turkey, quince (Cydonia oblonga Mill.) is found as both a wild and a cultivated tree species. The Karanlıkdere Valley is a pit area between Şefaatli and Yerköy districts in Yozgat Province that originates from the River Delice. Members of the Yozgat Karanlıkdere Valley quince population, containing 17 quince accessions and 15 commercial quince cultivars, were DNA fingerprinted using 30 simple sequence repeat (SSR) primers to identify the genetic relationships among them. A total of 111 alleles were detected for all 32 accessions, and the number of alleles revealed by SSR analysis ranged from 2 to 10 alleles per locus with a mean value of 3.70 alleles per locus. The Ms06g03 primer gave the highest number of alleles (Na = 10). Polymorphism information content (PIC) values ranged from 0.20 (CH05e04) to 0.78 (Ms06g03) with a mean PIC value of 0.45. Structure analysis and unweighted pair group method with arithmetic average (UPGMA) clustering of the accessions depicted three major clusters, where several pairs of accessions could not be separated. This study indicated that the SSR markers could be utilized as a reliable tool for the determination of genetic variations and relationships of quince accessions. Furthermore, the results of this study will be useful for starting a cross-breeding cultivar program for quince. © TÜBİTAK.Firat University Scientific Research Projects Management Unit: 6602c-ZF/17-98The authors thank the Yozgat Bozok University Scientific Research Projects Unit (Project No. 6602c-ZF/17-98) for its financial support