Genetic diversity in Silene sennenii Pau (Caryophyllaceae) assayed through DNA-based techniques

Abstract

Genetic diversity in Silene sennenii Pau (Caryophyllaceae) assayed through DNA-based techniques. Silene sennenii is a narrow endemic species from the NE of the Iberian Peninsula. It is considered as EN ("Endangered") according to the IUCN criteria and is under legal protection in Catalonia. In the present work we report an assay using three different approaches for surveying the genetic diversity in this rare, endangered campion: analysis of chloroplast haplotypes, AFLPs and transferability of microsatellites previously developed for Silene latifolia. None of the nine chloroplast regions sequenced showed any variability. Five out of the 21 microsatellite loci tested were polymorphic although more loci are required in order to perform a robust population genetics study. Regarding the AFLP analysis, five out of the 26 pairs of primers tested exhibited moderate levels of variability and therefore they could be useful for further investigating the genetic structure of S. sennenii. Although preliminary, our results based on three different genetic markers are in agreement with the low values of genetic variation already reported for this species employing allozymes.