Association Analysis and Validation of Simple Sequence Repeat Markers for Fiber Fineness in Ramie (Boehmeria Nivea L. Gaudich)

This study investigated simple sequence repeat (SSR) marker associated with fiber fineness in ramie (Boehmeria nivea L. Gaudich). Firstly, association analysis was carried out using 107 ramie accessions and 95 SSR markers. Three stable molecular markers related to fiber fineness were detected in multiple environments. Furthermore, we validated the three SSR markers using single marker association on a set of 286 accessions planted in another three environments. The result of polymorphisms analysis found that the average polymorphism information content (PIC) of three markers was 0.5149; average number of alleles was 3.6667; average genetic diversity was 0.6043; average Shannon-Wiener diversity index was 0.9710; and average major allele frequency (MAF) was 0.4488. We demonstrated that marker RAM39 was stably associated with fiber fineness, highlighting its utility for breeding. These findings provide a basis for genetic improvement of ramie quality traits through marker-assisted selection.