Investigating of Intraspecific Diversity of Potamogeton nodosus Poir. in Iran Using Morphological Traits and Molecular Markers

Abstract

The genus Potamogeton L. is an aquatic plant belonging to the Potamogetonaceae. Eleven species have been reported for this genus in Iran. This genus is located in the most of the water habitats of the country and has importance in various fields such as the purification of polluted water, absorption of heavy metals, and medicinal uses. One of the important species of this genus is Potamogeton nodosus Poir. which shows great morphological diversity in different aquatic habitats. In this study, we first studied the quantitative and qualitative morphological characters among different populations of this species. Since the morphological marker may be affected by the environment, we also used molecular markers. For molecular study, six pairs of SRAP primers and four ISSR primers were used. The results of the combination of two markers showed the intraspecific relationships of different populations of P. nodosus better than each of the two markers alone. According to the results, the populations were divided into four geographical groups: north, center, southwest, and southeast. The populations of the southeast region showed more genetic differentiation than other regions. Molecular variance analysis showed intra-population variations slightly higher than inter-population variations. Regarding to relatively high genetic diversity of populations of this species, conservational strategies for aquatic ecosystems of Iran is needed.