GENETIC VARIABILITY OF THE CEREAL (POACEAE) GERMPLASM COLLECTION MONITORED BY PROTEIN AND MOLECULAR MARKERS

All the new challenges that food production has been experienced, requiresadequate response not only in wide agricultural practice, but also in modernbreeding programs. Broadening genetic variability is indispensable to meeting theborder set by climatic changes, land erosion, human population growth, andsustainable agriculture. Gathering genetic variability, forming and examininggenetic collection are integral part of the task. A germplasm collection of 220entries, consisting of cereal (Poaceae) genotypes has been formed. Geneticvariability of wheat (Triticum sp. ), barley (Hordeum sp. ), and goat grass (Aegilopssp. ), samples from the germplasm collection was analysed using gliadin blocks asprotein markers, as well as, Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD)markers. Gliadin allelic variation was notable within Triticum sp. samples,revealing not only genetic divergence, but also the origin and the structure ofpopulations. Genotype variation and structure of populations of Hordeum sp. wasfollowed by hordein allelic variation. Sampled population expressed heterogeneityfrom two to five genotypes per population sample. Landraces, old and modernvarieties were separated in collection using hordein allelic variation, as well. Asmall, pilot, investigation was conducted on Aegilops sp. polymorphism usingRAPD primers. Number and percentage of polymorphic loci, effective number ofalleles, expected heterozygosity and Shannon’s information index were used toestimate genetic variation.