Use of Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA Analysis to detect genetic variation in Pyrus species.

Result of Randomly Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analyses performed on pear (Pyrus communis L.) are reported. DNA amplification profiles have been analyzed using 30 different 10-mer primers in order to identify putative genotype-specific markers for the cultivars William, Passa Crassana and Conference. Different annealing temperatures as well as two different Taq polymerases have been tested. Of the 30 random-sequence primers used, very few distinguished the cv William from cv Passa Crassana and only one could clearly differentiate the three genotypes. Noteworthy, the combination of two primers, which did not revealed polymorphisms when used singly, allowed to distinguish standard from g-rays treated material. This study shows the possibility to use RAPD analyses as reliable and cheap strategy to discriminate pear genotypes, representing a promising method for markers-facilitated screening in Pyrus spp genome studies