Microsatellite primers for Parkia biglobosa (Fabaceae: Mimosoideae) reveal that a single plant sires all seeds per pod1

UNLABELLED PREMISE OF THE STUDY Microsatellite primers were developed for an indigenous fruit tree, Parkia biglobosa, as a tool to study reproductive biology and population structure. Here we use the primers to determine the number of fathers per pod. • METHODS AND RESULTS Microsatellite loci were enriched in a genomic sample and isolated using pyrosequencing. Eleven primer pairs were characterized in two populations of P. biglobosa in Burkina Faso (each with 40 trees). The number of alleles per locus ranged from eight to 15, and one locus had null alleles. We genotyped seeds from 24 open-pollinated pods. The genotypic profiles of seeds per pod suggest that all seeds are outcrossed and that only one pollen donor sires all ovules in a single fruit. • CONCLUSIONS Ten microsatellite markers were highly polymorphic. All seeds per pod of P. biglobosa were full siblings. The markers will be useful for reproductive and population genetic studies.