Articles
ASSESSMENT OF GENETIC DIVERSITY IN AUSTRALIAN-GROWN MANGOSTEEN (GARCINIA MANGOSTANA L.) AND ITS WILD RELATIVES
Article number
692_19
Pages
143 – 152
Language
English
Abstract
Mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana L.) is a popular dioecious tropical fruit tree cultivated throughout South East Asia and Northern Australia.
Dioecious species are generally characterised by high levels of genetic diversity, however mangosteen is unusual in that phenotypic differences are uncommon.
Almost all trees are female with only a few anecdotal reports of male trees reported.
Furthermore, seeds from mangosteen are apomictic and consequently produce trees that are clones of the female parent.
It has been suggested by some mangosteen growers in North Queensland that the occasional phenotypic variants observed in their plantations are a result of cross-pollination from wild related species.
Whether these differences can be attributed to genetic variation or are purely a consequence of being cultivated at different geographical locations is unclear.
To address these questions, we conducted a preliminary survey using a new high-efficiency DNA marker technique, Randomly Amplified DNA Fingerprinting (RAF), to examine the level of genetic diversity in a population of G. mangostana trees collected from orchards in Northern Queensland.
Additionally, we examined the level of variation among a number of other Garcinia species including mangosteens closest relative, G. hombroniana, as well as native Australian Garcinia species.
Dioecious species are generally characterised by high levels of genetic diversity, however mangosteen is unusual in that phenotypic differences are uncommon.
Almost all trees are female with only a few anecdotal reports of male trees reported.
Furthermore, seeds from mangosteen are apomictic and consequently produce trees that are clones of the female parent.
It has been suggested by some mangosteen growers in North Queensland that the occasional phenotypic variants observed in their plantations are a result of cross-pollination from wild related species.
Whether these differences can be attributed to genetic variation or are purely a consequence of being cultivated at different geographical locations is unclear.
To address these questions, we conducted a preliminary survey using a new high-efficiency DNA marker technique, Randomly Amplified DNA Fingerprinting (RAF), to examine the level of genetic diversity in a population of G. mangostana trees collected from orchards in Northern Queensland.
Additionally, we examined the level of variation among a number of other Garcinia species including mangosteens closest relative, G. hombroniana, as well as native Australian Garcinia species.
Authors
L. Sando, C. Peace, C. Ramage, B.J. Carrol, R. Drew
Keywords
Garcinia, apomixis, RAF, crop improvement
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