Genetic diversity analysis of Sinojackia microcarpa, a rare tree species endemic in China, based on simple sequence repeat markers

Abstract

Although most Sinojackia species are endangered, they contribute greatly to the biodiversity of local ecosystems. Sinojackia microcarpa, an endangered species, is distributed only in three provinces of eastern China. Determining the genetic diversity of S. microcarpa provides key information for germplasm evaluation and species conservation. Here we used simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers to investigate the genetic diversity of eight natural populations of S. microcarpa. Leaf samples were collected from 144 individuals in 8 wild populations. The 156 bands were generated from 14 pairs of informative SSR primers, with an average percentage of polymorphic bands of 45.67%. The average values of Nei’s genetic diversity (He) and Shannon’s diversity index (I) were 0.1007 and 0.1658, respectively. The total genetic variation of S. microcarpa existed mainly within the eight populations, rather than among populations, and reached 86.41%. A cluster analysis showed that the eight wild populations of S. microcarpa could be classified into four groups, at a threshold of 4.0, based on an analysis of the SSR genotypes. Furthermore, there was a significant association between the phylogenetic relationships and the geographic locations of the S. microcarpa populations. In particular, populations from Fuyang, Jiande, and Lin’an in Zhejiang Province had close phylogenetic relationships and geographic distances. In addition, these three populations had the highest genetic diversity and the most individuals, suggesting that these three locations may be the S. microcarpa distribution center. This study serves as a model for studying the genetic diversity of endangered plant species.