Characterization of Grapevine Accessions from Ukraine Using Microsatellite Markers

Abstract

Forty-seven wine and table grape accessions representing cultivars widely grown in Ukraine and 28 reference accessions were genotyped at six microsatellite loci (VVS2, VVMD5, VVMD7, VVMD27, VrZAG62, and VrZAG79) in order to solve accession labeling problems among Ukrainian accessions, characterize their genetic diversity, and establish genetic relationships with other European grapevine cultivars. Genotypes were standardized to meet the requirements of the European Vitis Database. Genetic diversity (H_E = 0.845) and allelic richness (A_S = 8.09 alleles/locus/random sample of 16 individuals) were found to be higher in the Ukrainian collection than in any other geographical region, based on previously published studies on grapevine accessions. No geographic structure was identified in the total data set. However, winegrapes were significantly differentiated from table grapes and a Bayesian method detected two genetic clusters, one containing mainly table and Muscat grapes and the other mainly winegrape accessions from throughout Europe, including Ukraine. These results highlight the contribution of Muscat and European winegrapes in the breeding design of Ukrainian varieties and suggest that selection and historical and contemporary movement of germplasm are major factors shaping the structure of the grapevine gene pool. The genetically rich and diversified gene pool of Ukrainian varieties represents valuable source material for future sustainable breeding and improvement of grapevine.