The microsatellite markers for estimation of genetic diversity of Scots pine
Abstract
The review discusses trends in using of microsatellite markers for evaluation of the genetic diversity in Scots pine populations. A brief historical outline of SSR marker appearance, development and using for population genetic studies of pine species is given. The characteristics of groups of the most frequently used microsatellite markers of pines are recited. The principles of the development of microsatellite multiplexes are described. The published multiplexes of microsatellite markers proposed for estimation of the genetic variability of Scots pine are listed. Positive properties and disadvantages of individual loci are noted. The highly-valued microsatellites from expressed sequence tags (EST-SSR) of Scots pine were developed several groups of researchers. EST-SSRs allow us to reveal the genetic diversity in functionally important parts of the genome. EST-SSRs and chloroplast microsatellites (cpSSRs) are characterized by a lower mutation rate than nuclear microsatellites (nSSR) from genomic libraries and they can be more easily applied for related pine species studies. Of the 31 loci including in 24 published multiplexes of nuclear microsatellites of Scots pine, 19 loci were refused by authors because of the null alleles found in analyzed populations, low informativity and difficulties in interpreting the results of genotyping. Despite the fact that a large number of multiplexes of nuclear microsatellites for Scots pine have been published, the analysis of published data shows that the SSR-marker panels are still in the testing stage and are not ready-made recommended tools for pine population studies. The optimizing of the panels of microsatellite markers, specifying the composition and the number of loci suitable for assessing the genetic diversity of Scots pine remains relevant at the moment.