Genetic diversity of Capsicum chinense accessions based on fruit morphological characterization and AFLP markers

• Published in: Genetic resources and crop evolution Vol. 63; no. 8; pp. 1371 - 1381
• Main Authors: Baba, Viviane Yumi, Rocha, Katia Real, Gomes, Gisely Paula, de Fátima Ruas, Claudete, Ruas, Paulo Maurício, Rodrigues, Rosana, Gonçalves, Leandro Simões Azeredo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer Netherlands 01-12-2016; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Agriculture; Amplified fragment length polymorphism; Bayesian analysis; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Capsicum chinense; Clustering; Clusters; Data processing; Distributing; Domestication; Fruits; Genetic diversity; Germplasm; Life Sciences; Markers; Morphology; Phenotypes; Plant Genetics and Genomics; Plant Physiology; Plant populations; Plant Sciences; Plant Systematics/Taxonomy/Biogeography; Primers; Pungent principles; Qualitative analysis; Research Article; River basins; Brazil; Morphological descriptors; Molecular markers; Chili pepper; Gene bank; Ward-MLM analysis
• ISSN: 0925-9864; 1573-5109
• DOI: 10.1007/s10722-015-0325-4

Capsicum chinense
is one of the most cultivated and consumed chili pepper species in Brazil, and Amazon Basin is considered domestication center for the species.
C. chinense
is known for the impressive morphological fruit variability, which can be characterized by different shapes, colors, sizes, and pungency levels. In this study we report the characterization of 71
C. chinense
accessions from different Brazilian geographic regions using fruit morphological descriptors and AFLP molecular markers. Fourteen descriptors, eight qualitative and six quantitative, were used to fruit characterization. For AFLP analysis, seven combinations of
Eco
RI and
Mse
I primers were tested, and the following combinations were selected: E-ACA/M-CAC, E-ACC/M-CAA, and E-ACG/M-CAA. Morphological data were analyzed using WARD-MLM procedure, while Ward clustering and Bayesian procedure were used for molecular analysis. Variability was found in
C. chinense
in Brazil in terms of fruit phenotype, resulting in three clusters. Fruit shape and fruit weight characteristics were essential for distributing the accessions. Molecular data produced 302 polymorphic bands, forming two groups. It was not possible to group the accessions solely based on their origin using the fruit morphological data and molecular data. There was also no association between the morphological descriptors and AFLP markers. The lack of correlation suggests that both characterization steps are important for understanding and differentiating the
C. chinense
accessions. The combination of morphological and molecular analyses is suggested for the complete and detailed characterization of germplasm databases.