Using Inter-simple Sequence Repeat Markers to Analyze the Genetic Structure of Natural Rhodiola imbricata Populations from the Trans-Himalayan Region and Implications for Species Conservation

Abstract

Inter-simple sequence repeat markers (ISSR) were used to estimate genetic diversity and structure within and among populations of Rhodiola imbricata a rare perennial herbaceous phytoadaptogen distributed in Trans-Himalayan region of India, especially the high mountain passes of Ladakh. The plants are harvested for rhizomes which lead to destruction of the whole individual. Analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) showed that the genetic variation was found mainly within populations (62%) and the variance between populations was only 38%. Nei’s genetic distance and unweighted pair-group method with arithmetic averages (UPGMA) cluster analysis does not show a consistent pattern of spatial distribution to the genetic differentiation among the accessions which can be a indication for genetic drift within populations which was observed in our study. The size of the natural populations of R. imbricata noted in field observations were very small, chiefly owing to habitat destruction and overexploitation. Optimum harvesting and in situ conservation strategies, domestication and plant tissue culture should be developed to guarantee the sustainable use and protection of this rare species.

DOI

https://doi.org/10.29321/MAJ.10.100051

Pages

221 - 227

Creative Commons

Copyright

© The Author(s), 2025. Published by Madras Agricultural Students' Union in Madras Agricultural Journal (MAJ). This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited by the user.

Keywords