IDENTIFYING LYCHEE CULTIVARS BY ISOZYME ANALYSIS

Leaf isozyme banding patterns were studied in 30 cultivars and selections of lychee (Litchi chinensis Sonn.) by means of starch gel electrophoresis. Polymorphism in aconitase, aspartate aminotransferase, isocitrate dehydrogenase, phosphoglucomutase, shikimate dehydrogenase, superoxide dismutase and triosephosphate isomerase is demonstrated for the first time and observations are extended for the previously described polymorphism in phosphoglucose isomerase. In this study we found five groups of cultivars with identical electrophoretic genotypes. The 18 different cultivars were clustered by the UPGMA method into two large clusters and three pairs of similar cultivars. Three cultivars were relatively separate from the clusters. This study shows that isozyme polymorphism is a prevalent phenomenon in lychee, and that isozymes can provide useful genetic markers for lychee cultivar identification and parental analysis.