Population structure and genetic diversity of Lithocarpus litseifolius (Fagaceae) assessed using simple sequence repeat polymorphism locimicrosatellite markers
13 June 2016
Lyu, Li Sha; Shen, Ying Bai; Li, Kai Xiang; Liu, Zhong Hua; Wang, Wei Xia; Cheng, Jin; Xie, LeiLithocarpus litseifolius (Fagaceae), known as tree of Chinese sweet tea, is a natural commercial plant distributed in South China and adjacent areas. This study used ten microsatellite markers to investigate the genetic variation and population structure of 11 populations of L. litseifolius from main production regions in China. All of the tested loci proved to be effective for the species. Our results revealed that number of polymorphic alleles in each locus ranged from three to 39. The observed heterozygosity and expected heterozygosity had mean values of 0.43 and 0.52, respectively. The deficiency in heterozygosity may be the result of human interference of harvesting activities. An analysis of molecular variance revealed that most of the variation was within populations, whereas insignificant differentiation was found among populations. The Mantel test demonstrated that there was no significant correlation between genetic distance and geographic distance (r = 0.4089, p = 0.9940). The Bayesian model-based analysis sorted all 11 populations into two (when k = 2) or three (when k = 3) clusters with higher probabilities and showed a geographical pattern which is probably related to topography of China. Our results provide important information for protecting, sustainably using, and improving the current resources for breeding L. litseifolius.