Assessment of the Genetic Diversity of Some Female Jojoba (Simmondsia chinensis (Link) Schneider) Genotypes Growing in the Semi-arid Highlands of Sudan using ISSR Markers

Abstract

The knowledge of genetic diversity of a crop like Jojoba, a commercially grown plant to produce unique liquid oil from its seed, is essential in a breeding program aiming to the development of elite genotypesfor large-scale production. This study was carried out to evaluate the genetic diversity of 25 female jojoba genotypes growing in Arkaweet Area, East Sudan, using ISSR Markers. Genomic DNA was extracted from leaves of thestudied genotypes and quantified for PCR amplification. Five ISSR primers were used for PCR amplification to investigate the genetic diversity among the female jojoba genotypes. ISSR primers showed high polymorphic pattern and produced a total of 54 polymorphic bands with an average of 10.8 polymorphic bands per primer. The average of polymorphic information content (PIC) value of 0.37 indicates moderate polymorphism. The geneticdiversity ranged from 0.01 to 0.85. The results indicate the effectiveness of using ISSR molecular markers to reveal genetic variability among the studied female jojoba genotypes, a finding that could be used for development ofelite jojoba genotypes, which provide potential for large-scale jojoba production in Sudan.