RAPD analysis of genetic variability in Indian scented rice germplasm (Oryza sativa L.)

A set of 18 accessions from an Indian scented rice (Oryza sativa L.) collection was subjected to random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) with 10 arbitrary 10-mer oligonucleotide primers, applied to the 18 accessions, produced a total of 144 different marker bands of which 95.1 per cent were polymorphic. The size range of the amplified DNAs was mostly between 0.5 kbp and 4 kbp. Thus, with the selected primers sufficient polymorphism could be detected to allow identification of individual accessions. Visual examination of electrophoresis gels and analysis of banding patterns confirmed that many of the scented rice varieties under cultivation with similar names are genetically quite different. A dendrogram displaying the relative genetic similarities between the accessions showed a range of 25 to 77.5 per cent similarity. The RAPD analysis offered a rapid and reliable method for the estimation of variability between different accessions which could be utilized by the breeders for further improvement of the scented rice genotypes.