Abstract
RAPD (random amplified polymorphic DNA) markers were developed to distinguish Anoectochilus formosanus from Anoectochilus koshunensis and their putative hybrids. Morphological differentiation of these two species beyond
the flowering period is difficult. RAPD markers provide a rapid and easy tool for
identification of the two Anoectochilus species. In the study, forty arbitrary decamer primers were screened, and nineteen
species-specific RAPD markers generated from polymerase chain reactions (PCR) with
eight random primers were obtained. Nine were specific to A. formosanus and ten to A. koshunensis. Two primers, OPC-08 and OPL-07, produced two markers, one specific to A. formosanus and the other specific to A. koshunensis, which simultaneously appeared in the hybrids pattern. The RAPD markers can be applied
both to identification of A. formosanus and A. koshunensis species and to assessment of the extent fo hybridization in hybrids between them.
This information facilitates the breeding program process.
Key words
Anoectochilus
- Orchidaceae - RAPD - hybrid - identification
