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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Dawson, Georgia » National Peanut Research Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #352281
Title: Structure and genetic diversity in wild and cultivated populations of Zapote mamey (Pouteria sapota, Sapotaceae) from southeastern Mexico: its putative domestication center

Author
item MARTINEZ-CASTILLO, JAIME - Centro De Investigacion
item BLANCARTE-JASSO, NASIB - Centro De Investigacion
item CHEPE-CRUZ, GABRIEL - Centro De Investigacion
item NAH-CHAN, NOEMI - Centro De Investigacion
item ORTIZ-GARCIA, MATILDE - Centro De Investigacion
item Arias De Ares, Renee

Submitted to: Tree Genetics and Genomes
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/20/2019
Publication Date: 7/8/2019
Citation: Martinez-Castillo, J., Blancarte-Jasso, N.H., Chepe-Cruz, G., Nah-Chan, N., Ortiz-Garcia, M., Arias De Ares, R.S. 2019. Structure and genetic diversity in wild and cultivated populations of Zapote mamey (Pouteria sapota, Sapotaceae) from southeastern Mexico: its putative domestication center. Tree Genetics and Genomes. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11295-019-1368-z.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11295-019-1368-z

Interpretive Summary: The possibility of a reduction in genetic diversity of the tropical-fruit tree Pouteria sapota was analyzed using molecular markers on 188 samples of cultivated and wild samples. Though the heterozygosity of individual trees is conserved in cultivation, the overall genetic diversity of the cultivated populations is apparently decreasing. This knowledge allows developing strategies of management and conservation of this species.

Technical Abstract: The founder effect is commonly analyzed in annual crops, but not frequently studied in tropical-perennial fruit trees. Zapote mamey (Pouteria sapota) is a tree native to southeastern Mexico and Central America. The high nutritional value and appealing organoleptic characteristics of zapote mamey fruits draw high commercial value. In order to further understand how the domestication process has affected the genetic diversity of zapote mamey, 188 individuals were characterized using eight microsatellite loci. STRUCTURE and PCoA showed three groups in the wild gene pool and one in the cultivated one. An AMOVA showed a low, but significant, genetic differences between both gene pools. Permutation tests did not show significant differences in genetic diversity between both gene pools. The Garza-Williamson index showed low values in both gene pools and the Bottleneck program indicated an excess of heterozygosity in both gene pools, both analyses suggesting a genetic bottleneck in this species. Our results support the existence of a founder effect in the cultivated gene pool of P. sapota, but not a significant difference in genetic diversity between wild and cultivated gene pools.