Genetic diversity in Cinnamomum zeylanicum Blume. (Lauraceae) using random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers

Cinnamomum zeylanicum Blume. is an important taxa cultivated in coastal plains for its stem bark, leaf, fruits and roots as spice and for its medicinal properties. Cinnamomum is an indicator plant of semi evergreen forest. In this study, RAPD-PCR analysis involving 11 decamer random primers was used to assess the genetic variation within C. zeylanicum in Western Ghats of southern India. Some primers showed appreciable intra-species variation or molecular polymorphism at amplicon levels. Despite morphological similarity, a great deal of genetic polymorphism was observed among the accessions. In this study, unweighed pair group method with arithmetic averages (UPGMA) analysis showed up to 89% genetic variation among these accessions, which is further supported by principle co-ordinate analysis (PCA). Key words: Genetic diversity, Cinnamomum zeylanicum, RAPD markers, DNA polymorphism.