ARS | Publication request: Molecular markers: are they really useful to detect genetic variability in local garlic collections?

Submitted to: The Americas Journal of Plant Science and Biotechnology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: December 10, 2010
Publication Date: December 20, 2010
Citation: Garcia Lampasona, S., Burba, J.L., Simon, P.W. 2010. Molecular markers: are they really useful to detect genetic variability in local garlic collections? The Americas Journal of Plant Science and Biotechnology. 4(SI1):104-112.

Interpretive Summary: Garlic is a widely grown crop, but the identity of garlic varieties is often uncertain because garlic commercial types and cultivars are often given misleading names and multiple names for the some variety. Furthermore, sometimes growers have what they think is one variety underproduction when in fact sometimes these are mixtures. Both of these situations result in growers and consumers with garlic that may have unexpected problems in their ability to produce a crop in the field or provide an expected flavor or cooking quality in the kitchen. To address these problems the Argentine Agricultural Experimental Station La Consulta INTA (National Institute of Agricultural Technology) has had a program to improve garlic. In this study a genetic “fingerprinting” technique called AFLP was used to establish a certain identity for garlic in the INTA collection. AFLP was successful in identifying duplications and resolving mixtures of garlic. This research is of interest to garlic growers and consumers anywhere in the world, and also it is also of interest to scientists that maintain collections of genetics stocks of any crop.

Technical Abstract: The cultivation of garlic (Allium sativum L.) is an important activity in economic and social terms in Argentina. The traditional techniques of improvement have allowed us to obtain monoclones with proven superiority, compared with to the populations of origin. Currently these materials have been registered in the INASE (Argentine National Institute of Seeds) as new cultivars. The aims of our studies have been to characterize the genetic diversity of selected garlic clones, to verify their identity and to propose a new tool to facilitate the legal protection of germplasm. To achieve these goals we have evaluated molecular markers such as RAPDs, AFLP and FAFLP. Their usefulness is discussed in this paper.