Genetic diversity of Onobrychis sativa populations using seed storage proteins and its association with ecological factors

Onobrychis sativa is a very important legume used as forage in Iran. However, improvement of O. sativa is slow and time consuming, being made essentially by introduction of the foreign genetic material. This study evaluated seed protein profiles of 110 genotypes of O. sativa from 11 populations, to determine the extent of genetic diversity. On the basis of SDS-PAGE, 46 reproducible bands were used for analysis and genetic diversity was estimated based on the number of different protein peptides. The rate of polymorphic bands over the total bands detected ranged from 0.182 to 0.284 with an average of 0.233. SDS-PAGE of seed proteins showed high inter- and intra-population diversity and no clear differentiation on the basis of origin or source. The correlation between genetic and geographical distance matrices was not significance, indicating lack of cline trends in variation of seed storage proteins. It is suggested that the genetic base of cultivated O. sativa should be broadened by involving diverse parents in the breeding program. Expansion of the genetic base for O. sativa breeding might be accomplished by systematic use of germplasm that differs in protein profiles and has better quantitative traits.