Study of genetic variation among some Gossypium spp. genotypes available in Iran using ISSR molecular marker

The current study was conducted to explore genetic variations among several cotton species, including Gossypium hirsutum cultivar Varamin, G. barbadense cultivar T14, G. herbaceum cultivar Arya, hybrid of G. hirsutum cultivar Varamin × G. barbadense cultivar T14 (V×T14), and a hybrid of G. hirsutum cultivar Varamin × G. herbaceum cultivar Arya (V×A) using inter-simple sequence repeats (ISSR). In this study, a total of 60 bands were amplified using four ISSR marker primers. As a result, 57 bands showed polymorphism. The results showed a high level of diversity in the studied varieties. The highest percentage of polymorphism was related to ISSR4 primer with ACACACACACACACACT sequence (100%) and the lowest percentage was related to ISSR1 primer with AGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGC sequence (92.8%). Cluster analysis showed three major groups. The first group consisted of Arya and Varamin, the second group was comprised of V×A, T14 which showed a high genetic similarity indicating T14 originates from Varamin cultivar, and the third group contained V×T14. Overall, the results showed that, ISSR markers can be effectively used to study the genetic diversity of cotton.