Inter- and intra-varietal analysis of three Olea europaea L. cultivars using the RAPD technique

Characterization and selection of olive clones for the production of olive oil is essential in Portugal because of its profitable exploitation. "Moura-Serpa" is the most important Portuguese region for the production of olive oil relying on three cultivars for oil quality. These are 'Galega Vulgar', 'Cordovil de Serpa' and 'Verdeal Alentejana'. Therefore, it is of great importance to guarantee the varietal certification of the young trees and the establishment of new orchards. Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) technique was used to characterize these three cultivars. Analysis started using twenty primers that allowed us to distinguish the three cultivars and to select a reduced set of primers. The selected primers were used for inter- and intra-varietal analysis and fur establishing a profiling system to assay genetic diversity in other olive cultivars. The method has the potential for use in varietal certification and breeding programmes that need to analyse a high number of samples.