A genetic linkage map for a Full sib population of Eucalyptus grandis using SSR, DArT, CG-SSR and EST-SSR markers

Background Eucalypts are the most widely planted hardwood trees in the world, occupying globally more than 18 million hectares, as an important source of carbon neutral renewable energy and raw material for pulp, paper and solid wood. Intensive planting programs of Eucalyptus grandis have been carried out in the Argentinian Mesopotamia. Linkage maps are useful tools for quantitative trait loci (QTL) analyses and detection. Several maps for QTL analyses of growth and wood quality have been developed in this genus [1,2] and most of the E. grandis maps have been carried out in interspecific crosses. Improved marker density in genetic maps, highthroughput techniques and transferability across species are key aspects to increase resolution and speed for a variety of genomic applications in Eucalyptus.In this context, an important issue in association studies is the selection of appropriate mapped candidate genes that co-localize with QTL of interest. As part of the Biotech MERCOSUR project (Marcucci et al., this journal), we here report the construction of a genetic linkage map for E. grandis in the context of a QTL study of this specie in an effort to understand the molecular basis for quantitative trait variation in wood quality. This map includes Diversity Arrays Technology (DArT) [3], microsatellite (SSR) markers [4], Candidate Genes-SSR (CG-SSR) for wood quality traits and stress responses functions and Expressed Sequence Tag-SSR (EST-SSR) for putative function related to stress responses and other functions (Acuña et al., this journal). These CG-SSR and EST-SSR were not mapped in Eucalyptus previously.