DNA Polymorphism within Different Six Forms of Urginea maritima (L.) Baker (Liliaceae) from the Mediterranean coast, Egypt -

Urginea maritima (L.) Baker is an onion-like monocotyledonous plant native to the Mediterranean area and belongs to family Liliaceae. It is used in pharmacology for its well-known cardiotonic. In this study we have analyzed the genetic variation and the relationships within different six forms of Urginea maritima (L.) collected from different localities in Egypt using random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers. For this purpose we also analyzed different morphological traits (The bulb weight, volume, length, diameter, leaf shape, length, width, area and number of leaves). Bulb weight ranged from 679.8 – 140.9g, bulb length ranged from 16 – 9.06cm and leaf area ranged from 102.1 – 29.7cm2. RAPD analysis was performed with 5 primers chosen after a previous screening. Polymorphism percentage obtained from RAPD-PCR analysis was 87.26%. Significant genetic variability among those 6 forms was obtained both at the morphological and molecular level. We obtained a dendrogram for the morphological traits and a dendrogram for RAPD analysis and we compared them.