IDENTIFICATION OF NAVY BEAN VARIETIES USING RANDOM AMPLIFICATION OF POLYMORPHIC DNA

Random amplification of polymorphic DNA (RAPD-PCR) was applied to the identification of Australian navy bean varieties. A total of 296 marke rs were generated from 29 primers. Three new navy bean varieties that were difficult to distinguish by visual characteristics could be uniqu ely identified by RAPD-PCR. The varieties were distinguished from thei r parents and from 3 commercially available varieties. The overall lev el of polymorphism between all varieties was low (about 15%). However, 3 lines (Campbell-11, CH33-8D, Spearfelt) were more distinct genetica lly from the other genotypes (e.g. similarity of only 75%). Analysis u sing RAPD-PCR molecular markers may allow distinction of varieties for plant variety rights and will provide information on the genetic rela tionships of these varieties for breeding purposes.