AC/GT microsatellites in Chinese chestnut: isolation, polymorphism and identification of cultivars in Anhui Province

A genomic library of C. mollissima enriched in (AC)_(n) microsatellite was produced with the enrichment procedure, from which 10 (AC)_(n) microsatellite were isolated. Primer pairs were designed for 5 microsatellite loci. The polymorphism of 5 microsatellite loci was evaluated in 14 cultivar of Anhui province. 29 alleles were found in 5 (AC)_(n) microsatellite loci. The number of alleles per locus ranged from 4 to 7. Mean PIC=0.63. 14 cultivar were clutered into two groups based on SSR. The cluster result is identical to that based on the geographical region. The high degree of polymorphism of (AC)_(n) SSR will be useful as markers for mapping in Chinese chestnut and identification of cultivar.