Assessment of genetic diversity among Brassica napus lines by cluster analysis and principle component analysis

Genotypes selected from advanced inbreed progenies along with Zarfam variety as check were evaluated in a randomized complete block design with three replications at the experimental field of Seed and Plant Improvement Institute in karaj, during 2005-6. Several morphological and qualitative characters including days to flowering, flowering duration, number of branches per plant, number of pods per plant, number of seeds per pod, length of pod, plant height, 1000 grain weight, biomass, grain and oil yield, erucic acid percentage and glucosinolate content, were recorded in cropping season. The cluster analysis using ward›s method grouped the genotypes to six distinct classes. The results of principle component analysis showed that the first five components could explain 82 percent of total variance of the data. Cluster analysis using these components grouped genotypes into six classes and had some degrees of similarly to ward’s method. The scatter plot of the two first components showed that the genotypes could be classified in seven distinct groups. The results showed desirable genetic diversity among genotypes. Also it was observed that the genetic diversity of genotypes was approximately related to their geographic origins, as the Canadian and European lines were classified in separate groups