RESTRICTION-FRAGMENT-LENGTH-POLYMORPHISMS IN LANDRACE BARLEYS FROM ETHIOPIA IN RELATION TO GEOGRAPHIC, ALTITUDE, AND AGROECOLOGICAL FACTORS

Forty-three landrace (LR) barley (Hordeum vulgare) populations from a wide agro-ecological range in Ethiopia were assayed for RFLPs with 31 probes distributed over all barley chromosomes. Diversity between LRs was analyzed by Nei's genetic similarity (F) and genetic distance (d) parameters, The 43 populations were represented either by one single l ine (Set 1) or by four to five lines in a subset of 14 populations (Se t 2), The greatest diversity between LRs was observed in Set 1. Howeve r, many populations appeared rather similar in RFLP patterns, Relation ships between LRs were sharply altered by including the within LR-dive rsity component (Set 2), and the average level of between LR different iation was reduced compared with Set 1. The within-LR diversity was si milar in magnitude to that for geographical regions, Levels of within- LR RFLP diversity were poorly correlated with morphological and isozym e variations in the same LR or region. The results highlight the criti cal role of a sampling strategy that includes both within and between LR components, which is important both to large scale and core collect ions.