PRIMER NOTE: Novel microsatellite DNA markers for the threatened African endemic tree species, Milicia excelsa (Moraceae), and cross-species amplification in Milicia regia

Eleven microsatellite primer pairs were developed for the tropical African tree Milicia excelsa. Genomic DNA was enriched for dinucleotide (TC sub(n) and TG sub(n)) and tretranucleotide (GATA sub(n)), and 188 random clones were sequenced from both orientations. We designed and tested 44 oligonucleotide primer pairs, which were evaluated using genomic DNA from 30 M. excelsa mature trees collected from a natural population in Benin. Eleven of the 44 markers showed good amplification and were polymorphic. The number of putative alleles for polymorphic primer pairs varied from three to seven, with expected and observed heterozygosities ranging from 0.10 to 0.64 and from 0.10 to 0.80, respectively. All 11 loci amplified the related species Milicia regia, indicating that these primers will be useful for population and ecology genetic studies in other species of the genus Milicia.