GENETIC DIVERSITY ANALYSIS OF THE WILD COFFEA ARABICA L. POPULATIONS FROM HARENNA FOREST, BALE MOUNTAINS OF ETHIOPIA, USING INTER SIMPLE SEQUENCE REPEATS (ISSR) MARKER

The current study was conducted on the wild Arabica coffee of the Harenna Forest of Bale Mountain. 100 Coffee individuals, representing four populations, were collected and evaluated with ISSR. A total of 9 primers were tested for PCR amplifications and used. A total of 137 bands were detected. The number of bands per ISSR markers ranges from 10 to 21 with an average of 15.2. These were then used to estimate the genetic diversity. Out of the total bands produced, 61(44.53%) were polymorphic and the number of polymorphic bands per ISSR markers ranges from one (1) to nineteen (19), with an average of 6.77. The similarities between individual genotypes were estimated using UPGMA and NJ analysis. The populations were found to be clustered on the basis of their respective origin. AMOVA indicated that population level genetic diversity was relatively high (56.8%). Shannon’s diversity index showed the same patterns and indicated that the within and between populations genetic diversity of Coffea arabica L. populations are significantly different. Considerable proportion (83.6 %) of the total genetic diversity was distributed within populations. 16.4% of the total genetic diversity was due to differences among populations. Such distributions of the total genetic diversity could be attributed to gene flow via insect pollinators, seed flow by wild animals, birds and human. Generally, on the basis of samples of 137 bands in the four populations, ISSR have revealed moderate to high levels of genetic diversity within and among wild coffee populations of Harenna Forest