Genetic diversity and genetic relationships of East Asian natural populations of wild radish revealed by AFLP

To assess the genetic diversity and genetic structure of East Asian wild radish (Raphanus sativus var. hortensis f. raphanistroides), 13 natural populations from Japan and Korea were analyzed for amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP). On the average, 77.4% of the AFLP markers generated by eight primer pairs were polymorphic. Both Japanese and Korean populations of wild radish showed a high within population variation (66.3% polymorphic markers, Shannon's information index Ho = 3.486, and genetic diversity H sub(EP) = 0.128). The majority of the genetic variation of wild radish (96.7%) was observed within populations. Although no appreciable local differentiation of AFLP markers was detected, AFLP markers were more effective than allozymes in classifying natural populations of East Asian wild radish. AFLP variation showed a very close genetic relationship between R. raphanistrum and R. sativus, particularly Kazakhstan R. sativus, confirming the assumption that R. raphanistrum might be involved in the origin of R. sativus.