Isozyme variation was studied to determine genetic relationships among
563 accessions of Musa, including diploid (AA and BB), triploid (AAA,
AAB, and ABB), and a few tetraploid (ABBB) clones from Asia and the P
acific. Several open-pollinated seedling progenies of wild, diploid M.
acuminata and M. balbisiana were also studied. Cryogenic preservation
of leaf tissue in liquid nitrogen allowed sampling of a wide array of
germplasm from Papua New Guinea and several Pacific Islands without t
ransporting propagules which are subjected to quarantine regulations.
Electrophoretic variation was recorded in three enzyme systems, MDH, P
GI and PGM. In total, 52 distinct electromorphs were identified among
192 different isozyme phenotypes (zymotypes). Multivariate analyses of
the data clearly differentiated the major genome groups and revealed
patterns of association within groups. The isozyme data suggest that t
he genes contributed by the M. acuminata genome to the triploid Pacifi
c plantain AAB subgroup are similar to those of the acuminata/banksii
complex of Papua New Guinea. It is likely that the Pacific plantain su
bgroup, including the Hawaiian Maoli, Popo'ulu and Iholena cultivars,
originated in Papua New Guinea/Melanesia, rather than in Asia or the M
alay Archipelago.