Abstract
This study was conducted to investigate the genetic diversity in 48 samples of Auricularia species randomly collected from secondary forests in Osun (11), Oyo (10), Ondo (9), Ekiti (8), Ogun (8) and Lagos States (8) of Nigeria. Fourteen Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers were used for molecular characterization of Auricularia species. Phylogenetic relations were determined by cluster analysis and Polymorphic Information Content (PIC) and gene diversity determined using standard procedures. The Auricularia species were grouped into 6 distinct clusters based on morphological traits. The PIC value ranged from 0.5594 (OPH-15) to 0.7819 (OPB-12) and gene diversity from 0.5930 (OPH-15) to 0.7977 (OPB-12). Primer OPB-12 was the most informative for genetic diversity of Auricularia species. However, primer OPB-21 gave the highest number of alleles while OPB-12 showed the highest range of gene diversity and accounted for the diversity of the Auricularia species. The dendrogram and the principal coordinate analysis exhibited similar clustered patterns, revealing that all the tested strains could be divided into six distinct groups, each of which correlated with different geographical regions. Molecular characterisation is essential in genetic diversity studies and has proven useful in the classification of Auricularia spp. Keywords: Auricularia spp, Cluster analysis, Genetic diversity, Mushroom cultivation, Principal coordinate analysis, Polymorphic information content, RAPD markers
Highlights
Mushroom is a macro-fungus with a distinctive fruiting body, that can be seen with the naked eye and large enough to be picked by hand, which can be either epigeous or hypogenous (Chang and Miles, 2004).Mushrooms can be identified by their distinctive umbrella-like fruiting bodies and are consumed as mushroom sauce, a special delicacy in southern Nigeria
The major allele frequency, number of alleles, genetic diversity and polymorphic information content (PIC) obtained from the 48 accessions of Auricularia mushrooms collected from South Western
The maximum polymorphic information content was observed in primer
Summary
Mushroom is a macro-fungus with a distinctive fruiting body, that can be seen with the naked eye and large enough to be picked by hand, which can be either epigeous or hypogenous (Chang and Miles, 2004). Mushrooms can be identified by their distinctive umbrella-like fruiting bodies and are consumed as mushroom sauce, a special delicacy in southern Nigeria. Mushrooms are rich in protein, vitamins (B1, B2, C) and minerals in addition to other nutrients Wood ear mushrooms of the genus Auricularia have been domesticated for cultivation in different parts of the world (Kirk et al, 2017). Auricularia is the fourth most important cultivated genus of mushrooms after
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
