Determination of genetic relationships among Phaseolus vulgaris populations in a conical cross from RAPD marker analyses

Random-amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers were used to determine genetic relationships among Phaseolus vulgaris breeding populations. Genetic distances were calculated from the distribution of 317 RAPD markers among 8 parents, 10 individuals from 8 cycle-one populations, 10 individuals from 6 cycle-two populations and 10 individuals from 2 cycle-three populations of a conical cross. Genetic distances between populations and parents were consistent with their degree of relationship in the crossing scheme indicating that a RAPD analysis is a sensitive and useful method for categorizing breeding materials according to their genetic similarities. Genetic variation among individuals within populations increased from cycle one to cycle three and variation among populations within the cycles decreased from cycle one to cycle three in the conical cross. The results showed that this crossing scheme can be used to collect the genetic diversity in eight parents into a single plant breeding population.