to CLCD (Ali, 1999). Among those, a diverse genetic base of the cultivars grown in Pakistan was suggested Epidemics of cotton leaf curl virus disease (CLCD) was the compelas an important element in controlling the disease (Zhu ling factor in the decision to devise new strategies for cotton breeding programs of Pakistan. The genetic similarity among the elite cotton et al., 2000); a narrow genetic base may predispose the (Gossypium spp.) cultivars released before the advent of CLCD epi-crop to an epidemic (Holley and Goodman, 1989). demics was in the range of 81.5 to 93.41%. New cultivars were devel-Restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLPs) oped by crossing the exotic resistant germplasm (LRA-5166, CP-15/2, have been applied to cotton species to study genetic and Cedix) with adapted varieties highly susceptible to CLCD. A diversity, population genetics, evolutionary history, and study was designed to assess the genetic relatedness or diversity among genome mapping (Shappley et al., 1996; Wang et al., the newly released, extremely resistant and resistant cultivars. After 1995; Yu et al., 1997). For our purposes, this may not screening 27 cotton genotypes by different diagnostic methods such be a viable approach because the level of polymorphism as field evaluation, whitefly-transmission studies, grafting, dot-blotin cotton is quite low compared with other plant taxa hybridization, and multiplex PCR using conserved primers sequences, (Brubaker and Wendel, 2000). Moreover, the analysis 20 extremely resistant and resistant cultivars were selected for a random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis. The genetic simi-The plant material used in the study consisted of 27 cotton cultivars, varieties, or genotypes. These cultivars or varieties