CHARACTERIZATION OF CLONES OF WEST-INDIAN CHERRY (MALPIGHIA-GLABRA L)BY MEANS OF ISOENZYMATIC PEROXIDASE-ESTERASE SYSTEMS

Studies on genetic improvement of fruit trees has been utilizing genet ics-biochemistry in the characterization of materials propagated veget atively. Isoenzymatic analysis provides an adequate evaluation in reco gnizing accesses with the same genotype and, as far as possible, genet ic variations which occur in the collection and also makes it possible to verify if the collection is genetically well represented. This stu dy has as its objective to demonstrate the utilization of electrophore tic analysis for identifying clones of 14 breeding stocks of West Indi an Cherry from the peroxidase and esterase isoenzymes. The results sho wed that the 14 clones of the breeding stocks of West Indian Cherry sh ow activities typical of both isoenzymatic systems, and that these per mit differentiating these clones and distinguishing between them and, with this, establishing the efficiency of these systems in aiding proj ects of vegetal genetic improvement.