Isozyme variation (L.) ex Del. ssp. in progenies of plus trees of Acacia nilotica indica (Benth.) Brenan from north-western India

Abstract

Acacia nilotica ssp. indica (babuf) is an extremely important agroforestry species in semi-arid regions of Indian sub-continent. Genetic variation among 30 progenies of 'plus' trees of this species collected from 3 states of India, were assessed by esterase and peroxidase isozyme profiles. Rf value in peroxidase isozyme ranged from 0.02 to 0.12 with 4 bands; while it ranged from 0.05 to 0.32 with 10 bands in esterase. The range of similarity index varied from 0.214 to 1.000 for the two enzymes. In general, lesser genetic diversity was observed in the progenies of plus trees from Gujarat, medium in Uttar Pradesh and higher in that of Haryana, and there were also some similarities between certain progenies of the 3 states. The dendrogram revealed the co-efficient level of 0.53 and three clusters, i.e. A, Band C with 6, 8 and 16 progenies, respectively. The study is important for analysis of genetic diversity between progenies and its further use in establishment of seed orchards of Acacia nilotica ssp. Indica.