Genetic diversity and morphological variability of fifteen Stachys (Lamiaceae) species from Iran using morphological and ISSR molecular markers

Abstract

AbstractStachys L. (Lamiaceae) exhibits a great range of variation with cosmopolitan distribution. An area extremely rich in taxa including 34 species has been introduced in Iran. This study documents the genetic diversity and morphological variations of 48 accessions from fifteen Stachys species and two subspecies belonging to six sections. All of the specimens were collected from natural habitats in Zagros region of Iran. In order to evaluate morphological variations, 21 characters were used. Eleven ISSR primers with DNA samples of leaves were applied to assess the genetic variations among species and populations of the Stachys genus. Based on the results, from the eleven primers screened, nine primers produced reproducible bands. The highest percentage of polymorphism included 100% in section Aucheriana. Analysis of molecular variance revealed a high proportion of gene variation (42%) among populations within species. In total sections, the UPGMA clustering dendrogram genetically detected different groups. Based on the morphological analysis, each section was definitely positioned. A high genetic diversity and polymorphism was found among Stachys accessions belonging to each section. Based on the findings, the germplasm diversity was due to the wealth genetic resources in the central Zagros region which are important in plant breeding and gene conservation purposes. In addition, morphological and ISSR molecular markers are useful to display the diversity in Stachys genus.