Potential applications of molecular markers for genetic diversity and DNA fingerprinting in sugarcane

The study of polymorphism involves the development and selective use of molecular markers, which have proved highly useful not only for marker-assisted plant breeding, but also in understanding the crop domestication and evolutionary processes. The markers are found at specific locations in the genome that are transmitted in the fashion of standard laws of inheritance from one generation to the next, and thus provide valuable information for improvement practices in plant breeding programme. Molecular markers exhibit powerful systems for assessing phylogenetic relationships within or among species or closely related species. Plant DNA fingerprinting is a molecular marker-based advance technology that is extensively used for paternity testing, to assess seed purity, cultivar identification, cross monitoring of a variety/germplasm and to protect intellectual property rights. Genetic diversity is the study of comparing an individual or population with another individual or population, while DNA fingerprinting is the unambiguous or accurate identification of an individual or a population.