Assessment of the genetic diversity conservation in three tall coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) accessions regenerated by controlled pollination, using microsatellite markers

Abstract

Controlled pollination process is used during the regeneration of ageing accessions in the International Coconut Genebank for Africa and Indian Ocean (ICG-AIO). The effectiveness of this process has not yet been evaluated. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of controlled pollination method by investigating the level of molecular resemblance between the regenerated (G1) and parental (G0) populations of three tall coconut accessions, Mozambique Tall (MZT), Gazelle Peninsula Tall (GPT) and Tahitian tall (THT) using 15 microsatellites (SSR) markers. The results indicate a relative reduction of gene diversity during regeneration. It decreased from 0.690 to 0.587, but, low values of Jaccard’s dissimilarity index were found between regenerated and parental populations of tall coconut, varying from 0.072 to 0.133. Low values of genetic diversity between G0 and G1 tall coconut accessions (D_ST), ranging from 0.005 to 0.007, were recorded. Consequently, using controlled pollination technical as regeneration method of the genebank is effective for satisfying maintenance of the genetic integrity of the original coconut accessions.

Keywords: Tall coconut palm, controlled pollination, regenerated accessions, genetic diversity, microsatellites markers

African Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 12(20), pp. 2808-2815