Soybean cultivar identification using RAPD

New soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] cultivars are continually being developed and released making cultivar identification testing of this crop increasingly difficult and complex. Recent studies have indicated that polymerase chain reaction technologies such as the generation of random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers may have utility in cultivar identification of seeds. After preliminary screening of 30 primers, this study demonstrated that two primers differentiated nine of 18 public soybean cultivars. We conclude that RAPD markers are useful in the identification of soybean cultivars.