Evaluation of genetic variation among populations of Dipcadi filamentosum Medik in some geographical regions in Nigeria based on RAPD markers

The genetic variations were studied in different populations of Dipcadi filamentosum Medik collected from various geographical locations in Nigeria using 12 random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers. Genomic DNA extraction was carried out using DNeasy Plant Mini Kit (QIAGEN, USA) and amplification of fragments was performed by Polymerase Chain Reaction. Amplification by 9 primers resulted in the detection of 95 loci and this represented 100% polymorphism. The sizes of the bands ranged between 1500-50bp in OPAE-14 and OPAC- 11.The Principal Component Analysis (PCA) showed that the genetic variation observed were accounted for by the first three components (81.14%). Biplot analysis indicated that the markers effectively separated the populations into groups based on genetic similarity. The cluster analysis classified the populations into two major clusters with nine groups. The Neighbour joining clustered populations from YOB (north east,), OYO (south west) and KBA (north central) as genetically related and close neighbours.