ALLOZYME DIVERGENCE AND EVOLUTIONARY RELATIONSHIPS AMONG POPULUS-DELTOIDES, POPULUS-NIGRA, AND POPULUS-MAXIMOWICZII

Horizontal starch gel electrophoresis of enzymes was used to study genetic divergence among Populus deltoides Marsh. (section Aigeiros Duby, Salicaceae), P. nigra L. (section Aigeiros), and P. maximowiczii Henry (section Tacamahaca Spach.) at 37 to 40 allozyme loci coding for 12 enzyme systems in root tips. These three Populus species were genetically distinct from each other. Populus deltoides, P. nigra, and P. maximowiczii had mutually exclusive alleles at two loci, and each of these species had unique alleles at many loci. Certain allozyme loci were detected only in one or two of these species. Frequency distributions of allozyme loci were bimodal with respect to genetic identity for comparisons between any two species. The mean genetic distance was 0.36 ± 0.10 between P. deltoides and P. nigra, 0.39 ± 0.09 between P. deltoides and P. maximowiczii, and 0.34 ± 0.10 between P. nigra and P. maximowiczii. The enzyme electrophoretic evidence indicated a monophyletic origin of the three Populus species.