Genetic diversity of the endemic flat-needle pine Pinus krempfii (Pinaceae) from Vietnam revealed by SSR markers.

Pinus krempfii Lecomte (Pinaceae) is an endemic tree to Vietnam with restricted habitats at higher altitudes in the highlands. In this study, genetic variation of four populations of P. krempfii was assessed using 17 microsatellite markers (single sequence repeats). Of these 17 markers, eight were polymorphic, and among the 42 putative alleles amplified, 32 were polymorphic (accounting for 76.19%). The Cong Troi population was found to be the most genetically diverse (Shannon's information index, I = 0.415, and percentage of polymorphic bands, PPB = 52.95%), whereas the Hon Giao population was found to have the lowest diversity (I = 0.330 and PPB = 47.06%). The genetic diversity at species level was also estimated (I = 0.414, PPB = 76.19%). Molecular variance was found to be low among populations (11.94%) and high among individuals within the populations (88.06%). Private alleles were not detected in the Hon Giao population. The Yang Ly population had a positive FIS (inbreeding coefficient) value of 0.071, while the three remaining populations had negative values (-0.116 for Cong Troi, -0.316 for Chu Yang Sin, and -0.350 for Hon Giao). The results obtained show an excess of homozygosity in the Yang Ly population, and also suggest a deficiency of heterozygosity for this population. Several approaches and measures of conservation for P. krempfii are discussed and proposed.