In silico analysis of Pinus L. chloroplast DNA to microsatellites regions

Abstract

The Pinus genus covers a wide variety of widely cultivated species due to adaptability, high growth and wood quality. Molecular markers have been used for many genetic analyses, and among them, the microsatellite markers (SSR) have several applications and can be found in chloroplast genome (cpDNA) as well as in nuclear genomes (ntDNA). The chloroplast microsatellites markers (cpSSR) can be used for gene flow analysis, identification of hybrids,clones, paternity tests, genetic diversity studies, phylogenetic analysis, among others. The work aimed to characterize the cpSSRs of Pinus species with cpDNA sequenced and deposited in NCBI (National Center for Biotechnology Information). In the twenty species of Pinus spp. studied, 1.542 cpSSRs were identified, with 86,45% of mononucleotide type, and the less frequent the penta-(1.10%) and hexanucleotide (1.04%) types. Predominated cpSSRs in non-coding regions (intergenic). The results indicate presence of a wide range of cpSSR for Pinus spp., which can subsidize breeding programs of interesting species.