Genetic Fingerprinting of Goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis L. [Ranunculaceae]) using AFLP markers

Abstract

Goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis L. [Ranunculaceae]) could be considered a worthy ornamental plant for a forest-like garden setting, however, its primary use is medicinal. Research described in this paper demonstrates that AFLP analysis can be used to determine the genetic relationships between accessions of a plant species collected from different regions. The genetic relationships of 9 goldenseal accessions collected in 3 neighboring states, Tennessee, Georgia, and Florida, were determined. A cluster analysis from AFLP data showed that the 2 Tennessee accessions were very closely related to each other with a high bootstrap value of 93%. The 4 Georgia accessions were more diversified with a bootstrap value ranging from 38% to 63%. Among the 3 Florida accessions, genetic relatedness was very low. One Florida accession was closely related to the 2 Tennessee accessions (96%), one with the Georgia accessions (88%), and the other was distant to all accessions. The molecular marker technique developed for determining the genetic relationship and the genetic diversity between accessions could be used by plant breeders for the selection of parental material.