GENETIC RELATEDNESS AMONG RABBITEYE BLUEBERRY (VACCINIUM-ASHEI) CULTIVARS DETERMINED BY DNA AMPLIFICATION USING SINGLE PRIMERS OF ARBITRARY SEQUENCE

Most improved cultivars of commercially important hexaploid rabbiteye blueberry were developed from only four native selections collected from the wild; thus, many cultivars are closely related by lineage. The consanguinity among major cultivars is a potential problem, as the rabbiteye blueberries are highly self-incompatible natural outcrossers with potential inbreeding depression. We investigated the extent of genetic relatedness among 15 improved cultivars and four wild selections by the technique of random amplified polymorphic DNA, also referred to as arbitrarily primed polymerase chain reaction. Single decanucleotides of arbitrary sequence revealed polymorphism among cultivars and wild selections. Genetic distances were estimated based on the amount of band sharing. Cluster analysis of genetic distance estimates tended to group siblings with each other and with one or both parents. The average genetic distance between improved cultivars decreased relative to the four wild parental selections, which might indicate progression towards inbreeding. The significance of increased genetic relatedness among the improved cultivars of rabbiteye blueberry and the application of molecular methods in breeding and commercial cultivation is discussed.