Assessment of genetic diversity revealed by morphological traits and ISSR markers in hazelnut germplasm (Corylus avellana L.) from Eastern Black Sea Region, Turkey

Turkey is one of the most important centers of origin for hazelnuts as well as many fruit species. The Black Sea Region of Turkey, where hazelnut cultivation has been carried out for centuries, is very rich in hazelnut genetic resources. This study aims to assess phenotypic variation in nut traits and genetic diversity revealed by inter simple sequences repeat (ISSR) markers in hazelnut germplasm resources from the Eastern Black Sea Region. The nine local hazelnut accessions had a range of 1.68 g to 2.92 g for nut weight, 0.92 g to 1.44 g for kernel weight and 49.3% to 61.7% for kernel percentage. Principle component analysis (PCA) revealed that nut traits could effectively explain the variability among hazelnut germplasm resources. Molecular marker analysis yielded a total of 80 bands, 74 of which were polymorphic, from 9 inter simple sequence repeat primers. The rate of polymorphism varied between 66.7% and 100.0%. Similarity index of hazelnut cultivars and accessions was computed between 0.46 and 0.88. Research findings may contribute to the conservation and maintaining of hazelnut genetic resources. The present study suggests that the accession H-1 with superior nut traits could be good genetic material for the development of new cultivars in future hazelnut breeding efforts