Genetic Diversity and Population Structure in Chestnut (Castanea spp.) Varieties Revealed by RAPD and SRAP Markers

Chestnut (Castanea spp.) species give delicious fruits containing balanced nutriments and their varieties have been mainly distinguished by nuts and leaves. Because these morphological traits are influenced by environmental factors, it may be impracticable to distinguish various varieties exactly based solely on morphological traits. We used RAPD and SRAP markers to assess genetic relationship among exotic varieties and native ones including ‘SongchonBam’ and ‘KumyaWangBam’. UPGMA phylogenetic tree and PcoA analysis divided 35 chestnut varieties into 2 major clusters at the genetic distance of 0.26–0.30. According to STRUCTURE analysis, all samples were divided into two groups corresponding to two species (C. mollissima, C. crenata) in case K = 2. The markers selected in this study would be useful to provide detailed information about genetic diversity of chestnut germplasms to assist in breeding and conservation strategies.