DNA Based Characterization of Various Morel Species

Morels (Morchella species) are important edible mushrooms belonging to family Helveliaceae. Despite it’s economic and medicinal importance, not much scientific work (especially molecular work) has been done in Pakistan for improvement of morels. During present research, genomic DNA profiles of five morels species obtained from upper Swat valley, Khyber Puknhtoonkhawa province were studied using four Randomly Amplified Polymorphic (RAPD) primers GLE-05, -06, -07 and -09. Moderate amount of genetic diversity (average GD ranging from 27-62%) was observed among the material studied. The DNA fragments amplified using 4 RAPD primers ranged in size from approximately 100 to 1100 bp. Two, 3.0, 4.6 and 2.2 alleles per accession were amplified using GLE-05, -06, -07 and -09, RAPD primers, respectively. To elaborate phylogenetic relationship among the accessions, a dendrogram was constructed. It is recommended that similar kinds of research should be conducted on larger scale so that a more clear estimate of existing genetic diversity in Pakistani morels can be established which will help in formulating better breeding programs for the improvement of morels in Pakistan.