Analysis of genetic relationships among Eriobotrya germplasm in China using ISSR markers

The phylogenetic relationships among 17 accessions of genus Eriobotrya from China were analyzed by ISSR, with Rhaphiolepis indica (L.) Lindl as the out-group. One hundred primers were tested on three accessions. Sixteen primers that produced clear and reproducible amplification were chosen. A total of 301 DNA bands were obtained, out of which 287 were polymorphic. The Dice similarity coefficients were calculated and the dendrogram based on UPGMA cluster analysis was constructed using NTSY-2.0 software. Results showed that the accessions could be clustered into 4 groups. E. japonica Lindl. was closely related to E. prinoides var. dadunensis H.Z. Zhang., E. malipoensis Kuan., E. prinoides Rehd. and Wils., E. deflexa Nakai. (from Taiwan), and var. koshunensis Nakai. E. elliptica Lindl. was genetically distant to the other species and became one group by itself. E. henryi Nakai., E. seguinii. Card., E. serrate Vidal. and E. kwangsiensis Chun. were also closely related and were clustered in the same group. Our results differed from the traditional morphologic classification. Furthermore, the molecular marker data confirmed that E. kwangsiensis Chun. was a new species and E. prinoide var. dadunensis H.Z. Zhang. was more closely related to E. japonica than to E. prinoides. It is possible that E. prinoides var. dadunensis H.Z. Zhang. could be a separate species.