Assessment of genetic characteristics of Aconitum germplasms in Xinjiang Province (China) by RAPD and ISSR markers

Aconitum is a medicinal treasure trove that grows extensively on fertile pastures in Xinjiang Province (China); however, its molecular genetic characteristics are still poorly studied. We studied Aconitum kusnezoffii Reichb., Aconitum soongaricum Stapf., Aconitum carmichaelii Debx. and Aconitum leucostomum Worosch, using random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) and inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR) techniques, to evaluate their genetic relationship and potential medicinal value. Our results showed that A. kusnezoffii Reichb. and A. soongaricum Stapf. have close genetic relationship and cluster together. Polymorphism rates of 97.25% and 98.92% were achieved by using 15 RAPD and 15 ISSR primers, respectively. Based on Nei's gene diversity (H) and Shannon's index (I), the inter-population diversity (H(s)) was higher when compared with the intra-population diversity (H(p)). Among the three Aconitum populations, the coefficient of gene differentiation (G(st)) was 0.4358 when evaluated by RAPD and 0.5005 by ISSR. The genetic differentiation among the three Aconitum populations was highly significant, suggesting low gene flow (N(m)). This was confirmed by the estimates of gene flow (N(m) = 0.6473 and N(m) = 0.4991, based on ISSR and RAPD data, respectively). Comparing the RAPD and ISSR results, the two DNA markers proved similarly effective in the assessment of the genetic characteristics of the studied Aconitum populations and could be used for reliable fingerprinting and mapping in studies on Aconitum diversity in view of Aconitum suitability for development and protection.