Molecular insights of genetic variation in Erianthus arundinaceus populations native to China.

Jianbo Zhang,Yunwei Zhang,Fuyu Yang,Jiajun Yan,Minghong You,Xiao Ma,Daxu Li,Zhixue Dao,Yanqi Wu,Jin Zhang,Yu Zhang,Shiqie Bai,Changbing Zhang,Arthur J Lustig

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0080388

Abstract

Background E. arundinaceus (Retz.) Jeswiet is a warm-season, tall-growing perennial species native to much southern portion in China. The grass has been extensively used in sugarcane breeding and is recently targeted as a bioenergy feedstock crop. However, information on the genetic structure of the Chinese wild germplasm is limited. Knowledge of genetic variation within and among populations is essential for breeding new cultivars in the species. The major objective of this study was to quantify the magnitude of genetic variation among and within natural populations in China.Methodology/Principal FindingsIn this experiment, we analyzed genetic variation of 164 individuals of 18 populations collected from natural habitats in six Chinese provinces using 20 sequence-related amplified polymorphism (SRAP) primer pairs generating 277 polymorphic bands. Among and within the populations, the percentage of polymorphic bands (PPB) was 80.00% and 27.07%, genetic diversity (HE) was 0.245 and 0.099, effective number of alleles (NE) was 1.350 and 1.170, and Shannon's information index (I) was 0.340 and 0.147, respectively. The populations were clustered into six groups exhibiting a high level of genetic differentiation, which was highly associated with geographic origins of respective germplasm populations, but was not significantly associated with geographic distances between the populations.Conclusions/SignificanceThis is the first report indicating that large genetic variation exists in the Chinese E. arundinaceus germplasm based on the SRAP molecular marker analysis of native populations. The genetic structure of populations in the species has been substantially affected by geographic landforms and environments. The diverse collection will be highly valuable in genetic improvement in the species per se and likely in sugarcane.

Highlights

E. arundinaceus is a warm-season, tall-growing, caespitose perennial species native to China and certain other south and southeast Asian nations of temperate climates to tropical environments [1,2]
The percentage of polymorphic bands (PPB) within each population ranged from 16.94% (Pop3) to 33.33% (Pop4) with an average of 27.07% while PPB was 80.00% at the species level
Genetic Variation In previous reports, the genetic diversity of E. arundinaceus was studied using individual clones, which were collected from Southeast Asia and Chinese tropical and subtropical regions

Summary

Introduction

E. arundinaceus (synonym of Saccharum arundinaceum Retz.) is a warm-season, tall-growing, caespitose perennial species native to China and certain other south and southeast Asian nations of temperate climates to tropical environments [1,2]. As a wild relative of sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum L.), the species has contributed to the genetic improvement in sugarcane breeding [3] and possesses high potential for the development of energy cane interspecific hybrids [4]. It is widely distributed in the Chinese provinces of Anhui, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hainan, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Shanxi, Sichuan, Taiwan, Xinjiang, Xizang, Yunnan, and Zhejiang [5].

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