Evaluation of genetic diversity in Aegilops tauschii populations using SSR markers

The genus Aegilops is a critical genetic resource for wheat improvement. Among Aegilops species, Ae. tauschii Coss. plays a pivotal role in wheat domestication and serves as a rich gene pool for traits that enhance tolerance to environmental stresses. This study investigated the genetic diversity of 48 Ae. tauschii samples collected from various regions in Iran and Turkey using simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers. A total of 72 polymorphic fragments were amplified across the samples based on the SSR banding patterns. The average values of polymorphism information content (PIC), marker index (MI), and resolving power (Rp) were 0.36, 0.66, and 1.89, respectively. Analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) revealed that the majority of genetic diversity existed within populations rather than among them. Additionally, the Iranian population exhibited the highest values for the effective number of alleles (Ne), Shannon’s information index (I), and expected heterozygosity (He). Cluster analysis and population structure analysis indicated a lack of a clear geographic pattern in the distribution of the studied samples, reflecting a high level of genetic diversity within this germplasm. These findings underscore the potential of Ae. tauschii as a valuable genetic resource for identifying useful alleles that can be transferred to improve wheat varieties