Genetic Variability and Relationship Studies of Mandarin (Citrus reticulata Blanco) Using Morphological and Molecular Markers

Abstract

Mandarin (Citrus reticulata Blanco) is the second most important citrus crop worldwide. A total of 25 mandarin accessions collected from North, Central and North-Eastern regions of India, were evaluated for phenotypic and genotypic variations using morphological and random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) and inter-simple sequence repeats (ISSR) markers. Significant variability was observed in the selected mandarin accessions by the analysis of eleven quantitative and 22 qualitative morphological characters of leaves, fruits and seeds. RAPD and ISSR markers also showed polymorphism (95 %). Jaccard’s genetic similarity value of RAPD and ISSR was found in the range of 0.46–0.96 (average 0.71) and 0.42–0.96 (average 0.69), respectively suggesting moderate level of genetic diversity within the mandarin group. Four of the fifteen RAPD primers were also able to generate cultivar specific amplicons, which may be used for identification of cvs. SZ-In-Com, Dancy, Fairchild and Fewtrell’s Early. The present study revealed that morphological and molecular markers can be successfully utilized for determining genetic diversity and genetic relationship of mandarin group and used in mandarin breeding programmes.