Assessment of genetic diversity patterns in Chilean quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.) germplasm using multiplex fluorescent microsatellite markers

Abstract

Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.) is a staple seed crop in the Andean region of South America. Improving quinoa productivity is a primary food-security issue for this region, and has been part of the impetus for the establishment of several new quinoa breeding programs throughout the Andean region. Chilean quinoa has been characterized as morphologically diverse and bifurcated into coastal and highland ecotypes. The success of emerging breeding programs will rely heavily on the development of core germplasm collections and germplasm evaluationespecially of the coastal quinoa ecotypes that are often neglected in traditional breeding programs. Thus, the objective of this study was to characterize and quantify the genetic diversity within 28 Altiplano and 31 coastal Chilean accessions of quinoa using microsatellite markers. To facilitate the analysis, we also report the development of seven sets of fluorescent multiplexed microsatellite PCR reactions that result in genetic information for 20 highly polymorphic microsatellite loci. A total of 150 alleles were detected among the quinoa accession, ranging from 2 to 20 alleles per locus and an average 7.5 allele/locus. Both cluster (UPGMA) and principal component analyses separated the accessions into two discrete groups. The first group contained quinoa accessions from the north (Andean highlands) and the second group consisted of accessions from the south (lowland or coastal). Three accessions from Europe were classified into the southern quinoa group. The data obtained in the diversity analyses highlights the relationships within and among northern and southern Chilean quinoa accessions and provides the quinoa scientific community with a new set of easy to use and highly informative genetic markers.

Antimicrobial Potential and Phytochemical Content of Six Diverse Sources of Quinoa Seeds (<i>Chenopodium quinoa</i> Willd.)

“…It was possible to observe in the biplot that cold-temperate and arid environments were distributed and well separated between the left and right side of the central axis of PC1. The environment-induced relationship among variables and previous genotypes characterization [32] matched well in each quadrant of the biplot. Thus, describing positive correlation when vectors from the origin to each variable marker (white circle) presented an acute angle and a negative correlation when this was obtuse.…”

Importance of Ionic and Osmotic Components of Salt Stress on the Germination of Four Quinua (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.) Selections

“…This has induced some degree of genetic distancing among these populations, segregating them into two discrete groupings. This segregation has broad agricultural implications, in particular in the adaptability that they have developed to their respective environments (Fuentes et al, 2005;2008). Consequently, it is possible that the quinua populations from the north are closer to halophytes or facultative halophytes, as described by Bosque et al (2003), while the selections from the south could be closer to glycophyte plants.…”

Effects of Sowing Time on the Seed Yield of Quinoa (<i>Chenopodium quinoa</i> Willd) in South Kanto, Japan

“…At present, this species is distributed from Colombia to Southern Chile and from sea level up to >4000 m above sea level. This species is classified into certain ecotypes (including the Altiplano, sea-level, and valley types) based on the place of origin [3]- [5]. Altiplano type quinoa originates around Lake Titicaca in Peru or Bolivia, sea-level type quinoa originates in Southern Chile, and valley-type quinoa originates in the high altitude (2000 and 3000 m above sea level) of Bolivia [6]- [8].…”