Hordein variation in Brazilian barley varieties (Hordeum vulgare L.) and wild barley (H. euclaston Steud. and H. stenostachys Godr.)

SDS-PAGE was used to analyze the hordein polypeptide patterns of Brazilian barley varieties (Hordeum vulgare L.) and of two native species of Hordeum from southern Brazil (H. euclaston Steud. and H. stenostachys Godr.). Forty different hordein polypeptide bands with molecular weights ranging from 30 to 94 kDa were found in the seeds of the three species studied. Twelve of the 14 varieties examined showed intravarietal polymorphism. The number of bands ranged from 10 to 17, depending on the variety, and from 3 to 13 among individual seeds, with a total of 26 bands in H. vulgare. Phenograms using each seed as an operational taxonomic unit (OTU) showed that the seeds from most varieties did not form distinct clusters. Seeds from different plants of the native species varied considerably. The molecular weights of the hordein polypeptides of the two native species were quite different from those of H. vulgare. There was a greater similarity between the native species than with H. vulgare, although H. stenostachys was slightly closer to the cultivated species than H. euclaston.