Integration of Morphological, Protein, and RAPD Markers for Diversity Analysis in Durum Wheat

Shabnam Niaz; Muhammad Waleed; Muhammad Akhlaq; Nasir Ahmad Khan

Integration of Morphological, Protein, and RAPD Markers for Diversity Analysis in Durum Wheat

Authors

Shabnam Niaz Department of Botany, Hazara University, Mansehra, Pakistan
Muhammad Waleed Department of Horticulture, Hamdard University Karachi
Muhammad Akhlaq
Nasir Ahmad Khan Department of Plant Pathology, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan

Keywords:

Durum wheat, , germplasm, , genetic diversity, , RAPD, , DNA-based markers, , Cluster analysis, , Triticum durum.

Abstract

Triticum durum L. (durum wheat), an allotetraploid species, is widely used for producing noodles, macaroni, and pasta at the commercial level. For qualitative and quantitative improvement, it is essential to estimate the extent of genetic variation within this species. The present study aimed to evaluate the genetic diversity in a world collection of T. durum accessions using DNA-based Randomly Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers. A total of 175 accessions were grown in Azad Jammu and Kashmir for morphological characterisation, and 30 genotypes selected randomly were analysed for DNA-based diversity using 40 RAPD primers. RAPD analysis revealed 238 fragments, of which 219 (92.05%) were polymorphic, confirming high genetic variability. Primers GL B-7, B-13, B-17, and D-12 showed the highest polymorphism. Genetic distances among the 30 accessions ranged from 0.00 to 32.0%. The most divergent pair was accession 012967 (population 2) from Azad Kashmir and 013140 (population 21) from Syria, with a genetic distance of 32%. Cluster analysis separated the accessions into two principal groups: the first comprising populations 1 (012966) and 2 (012967), forming a distinct cluster, and the second divided into two subclusters. Overall, the accessions exhibited considerable genetic variability at morphological, seed storage protein, and DNA levels, indicating strong potential for use in breeding programs aimed at developing improved durum wheat varieties to meet the growing industrial demand in Pakistan.

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Integration of Morphological, Protein, and RAPD Markers for Diversity Analysis in Durum Wheat