Genetic Diversity of Camellia taliensis from Yunnan Province of China Revealed by AFLP Analysis

Camellia taliensis is a critically species endemic to southern Yunnan, China. We assessed the genetic variability within and among eleven populations of this species using AFLP marker. At species level: Nei’s (1973) gene diversity (He) was 0.099, and Shannon’s Information index (Ho) 0.178, at the population level: He=0.083, Ho =0.137. A low level of genetic differentiation among populations was detected based on Gst =0.1606 (16.1%), Shannon’s diversity index (16.04%), and AMOVA (19.03%). Pairwise genetic identity (I) values among populations ranged from 0.971 to 0.997. There was no correlation between genetic and geographic distance among the populations studied. The influence of human activity and forest fragmentation may play a prominent role in creating this species’s current endangered status. Conservation strategies are suggested including in situ strategies and ex situ strategies based on the observed genetic information of population.