CHARACTERIZATION OF WILD POTATO SPECIES FOR MOLECULAR, MORPHOLOGICAL AND LATE BLIGHT RESISTANCE TRAITS

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Eleven wild potato species were characterized by simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers (STU6SNRN and STIIKA), morphological (DUS: distinctness, uniformity and stability) characters and late blight resistance trait. SSR analysis distinguished all the wild species based on molecular profiling. SSR marker STU6SNRN (PIC: 0.92 and alleles: 15) exhibited higher polymorphism than STIIKA (PIC: 0.89 and alleles: 14). The predominant alleles in these species were 175, 178, 184, 190 and 202 bp (STU6SNRN); and 188, 192, 195, 203, 209 and 214 bp (STIIKA). Additionally, morphological characterization based on DUS traits showed phenotypic variations in the species. All species were observed highly resistant to late blight under controlled chamber study. This study suggests that diversity exists among the wild species based on SSR profile, DUS traits and late blight resistance, and could be exploited in future research. Further, SSR profile of these species would be useful in research on identification of trait-specific alleles for late blight resistance, their utilization in biotechnological research, and also in genetic fidelity testing for true-to-type genotypes.