Genetic analysis of selected Sargassum fusiforme (Harvey) Setchell (Sargassaceae, Phaeophyta) strains with RAPD and ISSR markers

Since the 1980s, Sargassum fusiforme has been cultivated in Zhejiang, South China, and nowadays it becomes one of the important commercial seaweeds in China. With traditions of eating habits in the East Asian countries, this brown alga is used as food, because it contained functional oligo/polysaccharides and chemical components, and was regarded playing roles in antioxidant activities and regulating immunology. Through over 15 years' selection, breeding and cultivation, we obtained three strains with good traits and testified their characters during the production, which included the cultivars with high yield and other two good characters, either all the selected strains were applied in the Sargassum production. To avoid confusion during the selection and nursery, it was preferred to establish one fingerprint for distinguishing the Sargassum cultivars from different strains. Random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) and inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR) methods were adopted to analyze the genetic diversities of the selected S. fusiforme strains. With that, one fingerprint with RAPD markers was constructed, and one sequence characterized amplified region (SCAR) marker to S. fusiforme was obtained. It is indicated that the applied fingerprint could be valid in S. fusiforme genetic and germplasm justification, and will be positive to molecular marker assistance in its selection and cultivation.