Microsatellite Sequence Polymorphisms Reveals Substantial Diversity in Caribbean Breadfruit [Artocarpus altilis (Parkinson) Fosberg] Germplasm

Abstract

Breadfruit [Artocarpus altilis (Parkinson) Fosberg] is recognized as a tropical fruit tree crop with great potential to contribute to food and nutrition security in the Caribbean and other tropical regions. However, the genetic diversity and germplasm identification in the Caribbean and elsewhere are poorly understood and documented. This hampers the effective conservation and use of the genetic resources of this tree crop for commercial activities. This study assessed the genetic identity, diversity, ancestry, and phylogeny of breadfruit germplasm existing in the Caribbean and several newly introduced accessions using 117 SNPs from 10 SSR amplicon sequences. The results showed that there was high and comparable genetic diversity in the breadfruit germplasm in the Caribbean, and the newly introduced breadfruit accessions were based on nucleotide diversity (πT) 0.197 vs. 0.209, respectively, and nucleotide polymorphism (θW) 0.312 vs. 0.297, respectively. Furthermore, the existing Caribbean breadfruit accessions and the newly introduced breadfruit accessions were statistically genetically undifferentiated from each other (p < 0.05). Ancestry and phylogeny analysis corroborated the genetic relatedness of these two groups, with accessions of these groups being present in both main germplasm clusters. This suggests that the existing Caribbean breadfruit germplasm harbors a higher level of genetic diversity than expected.