Analysis of genetic diversity in the natural population of Emmenopterys henryi using RAPD

Genetic diversity and genetic differentiation of Emmenopterys henryi, a national Class II protection plant, were analyzed by using random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) marker. 9 populations of Emmenopterys henryi with 173 individuals were amplified with 12 random primers and total 182 amplified bands were produced. Among which, 100 bands were polymorphic and the percentage of polymorphic bands (PPB) was 54.95%. The genetic diversity at species level was relatively high. Shannon information index (I) was 0.2838 and Nei's gene diversity (h) was 0.1900. The genetic diversity at population level was relatively low. The mean of PPB was 16.48%, the mean of I was 0.0914 and the mean of h was 0.0622. Analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) demonstrated that the genetic differentiation among population was high. Variation among population occupied for 74.76%, while that within population occupied only for 25.34%. The gene flow among population was very low down to 0.2434. The mean genetic distance of 9 populations of Emmenopterys henryi was 0.1653. There was significant correlation between genetic distance and geographical distance. Using unweighted pair group method with arithmetic average (UPGMA), 9 populations of Emmenopterys henryi were clustered into two groups, inner-province group and outer-province group.