RAPD Profile Analysis of Betel Vine Cultivars

RAPD analysis in selected cultivars of Kapoori and Bangla betel vines (Piper betle L.) were carried out in order to ascertain the relatedness of the two to each other. On the basis of the data from 10 RAPD primers, it was found that the Kapoori cultivars were more heterogeneous (mean SI = 0.521) while the Bangla cultivars were mostly similar to each other (mean SI = 0.884). Within each type, the overall polymorphism of RAPD bands was more than 70 %. When RAPD band data for both types of cultivars were considered cumulatively, the two were clearly separated from each other. In fact only six bands out of a total of 60 bands were found to be common to cultivars of both types. Bands specific to only one of the two types have potential for developing betel vine cultivar-specific probes and SCAR-markers.