Genetic diversity among Asparagus species and cultivars of Asparagus officinalis L. using random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers

The species of Asparagus are very important as they are used for ornamental, vegetable and medicinal purposes since ancient time. In the present study, random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers were used to evaluate genetic diversity among nine species of Asparagus and six cultivars of Asparagus officinalis L. RAPD analysis using seven random oligonucleotide primers yielded a total amplification of 245 bands, among which 220 (89.80%) were polymorphic with an average of 31.4 bands per primers. Highest number of 39 (97.50%) polymorphic bands were obtained with primer OPC-07, while minimum polymorphic bands were 18 (69.23%) with primers OPA-01. Genetic similarity coefficient ranged from 0.75 to 0.96 with an average of 0.85. Phenogram clustered all Asparagus species and A. officinalis L. cultivars into two clear clusters. One cluster comprised of all cultivars of A. officinalis L. while the second cluster comprised of all the Asparagus species. The present study reveals that RAPD markers were more convincing for analyzing genetic diversity among Asparagus species and cultivars of A. officinalis L. Key words: Asparagus officinalis L., genetic diversity, random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD), Phenogram.