ARS | Publication request: Characterization of Iranian Grapevine Cultivars Using Microsatellite Markers

Submitted to: Vitis
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: February 3, 2003
Publication Date: December 20, 2003
Citation: FATAHI, R., EBADI, A., MEHLENBACHER, S.A., BASSIL, N.V. CHARACTERIZATION OF IRANIAN GRAPEVINE CULTIVARS USING MICROSATELLITE MARKERS. VITIS. 2003. v. 42 No.4. p.185-192

Interpretive Summary: DNA markers are being used to characterize grapes. In recent years, microsatellites, also known as simple sequence repeats (SSRs), have become the preferred type of marker. Sixty-two types of grapes from Iran and the USA were characterized using nine previously identified microsatellite DNA markers. Distance values revealed that the grapes could be divided into three groups, one each for table grapes, wine grapes and rootstocks. Among the Iranian table grape cultivars, 6 additional groups could be identified. The three largest sets of Iranian cultivars were Askari, Bidane and Yaghoti. The SSR markers in this study could not differentiate among clones of a cultivar, including variations in berry color or shape. As expected, the Muscat Hamburg collected in Tehran and OSU showed identical profiles, as did Flame Seedless in the two collections. These markers also indicated that the Keshmeshi grapes in this study were similar. Keshmesh, a name that means raisin, is a very common name of the grapes used for making raisins in Iran. In this case, similar names imply identical use but do not necessarily indicate genetic similarity of cultivars. SSR marker data proved to be a very efficient method for characterization of grapes.

Technical Abstract: Sixty-two grapevine (Vitis spp.) accessions from Iran and the USA were characterized at 9 highly polymorphic microsatellite loci using fluorescent primers and a capillary electrophoresis fragment sizing system. The number of alleles observed per locus ranged from 4 to 16 and heterozygosity values ranged from 0.47 to 0.86. Genetic similarity was estimated for each pair of accessions as the proportion of shared alleles. A phenogram constructed from genetic dissimilarity values revealed three clusters, one each for table grapes, wine grapes and rootstocks. The phenogram also revealed three clonal sets (Askari, Bidane and Yaghoti) as well as some synonyms and homonyms among Iranian table grape cultivars.