Inferences of genetic structure and demographic history of Rhododendron protistum var. giganteum —The world’s largest Rhododendron using microsatellite markers

Genetic Diversity and Population Structure of Rhododendron rex Subsp. rex Inferred from Microsatellite Markers and Chloroplast DNA Sequences

“…Thus, the current levels of genetic diversity in R. rex subsp. rex may be attributed to the species' long-lived habit, which is similar to other perennial woody plants [9,22].…”

“…rex has lower genetic diversity (H E = 0.540) than the other species of Rhododendron, such as R. protistum var. giganteum (H E = 0.602) [9], R. jinggangshanicum (H E = 0.642) [64], R. simsii (H E = 0.754) [65], R. ripense (H E = 0.800) [66], and R. brachycarpum (H E = 0.815) [67], but has higher genetic diversity than R. ferrugineum (H E = 0.500) [68]. Meanwhile, the genetic diversity of R. rex subsp.…”

“…However, as an important natural resource for human daily life and ecosystem composition, most Rhododendron species are facing risk of extinction due to the high frequency of anthropogenic disturbance [6]. Thus, research on the population genetic information of Rhododendron species is undoubtedly beneficial for germplasm protection and sustainable utilization [6][7][8][9].Inferring genetic information is recognized as the undisputed basis for the sustainable exploitation and conservation of plant diversity [10,11]. Different molecular markers are used in assessing genetic information and identifying distinct plant populations for management and conservation [12][13][14].…”

“…However, as an important natural resource for human daily life and ecosystem composition, most Rhododendron species are facing risk of extinction due to the high frequency of anthropogenic disturbance [6]. Thus, research on the population genetic information of Rhododendron species is undoubtedly beneficial for germplasm protection and sustainable utilization [6][7][8][9].…”

Genetic diversity and population structure of Rhododendron simsii (Ericaceae) as revealed by microsatellite markers

“…EST-SSRs, are highly useful for gene targeting, markerassisted breeding, and QTL mapping because of potential linkage with transcriptional regions of known function, and low cost of development (Zheng et al 2013, Wu et al 2014a). SSR markers have been isolated and used for genetic diversity analysis in several Rhododendron species, such as R. jinggangshanicum (Li et al 2015), R. ferrugineum (Delmas et al 2011, Charrier et al 2013, R. aureum (Kwak et al 2015), R. brachycarpum (Kwak et al 2015), R. protistum (Wu et al 2017), and R. ripense (Kondo et al 2009). For R. simsii, a limited set of SSR markers have been developed (Tan et al 2009, Wang et al 2017.…”