Scientific Journal

Evaluation of Genetic Diversity of Some Cannabis Sativa Ecotypes by SCoT and ISSR Markers

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Department of Production Engineering and Plant Genetics, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Birjand, Birjand, Iran

10.22034/pgr.2026.2084647.1032
Abstract
Cannabis (Cannabis sativa L.) is a sustainable industrial crop that can be cultivated for fiber and seed production across diverse geographical and climatic conditions. In this study, 11 cannabis ecotypes were evaluated using 10 SCoT primers and 10 ISSR primers to estimate the amount of genetic diversity, genetic relatedness and divergence among ecotypes, and some genetic parameters. The ISSR and SCoT markers generated 63 and 77 scorable bands, respectively, with polymorphism rates exceeding 87% for both marker systems. The mean values of the number of polymorphic bands, percentage of polymorphism, polymorphic information content (PIC), effective multiplex ratio (EMR), marker index (MI), and resolving power (RP) were 7.78, 92.02%, 0.35, 7.13, 2.74, and 0.70, respectively, for SCoT markers, and 7.86, 87.50%, 0.32, 7.00, 2.85, and 0.70, respectively, for ISSR markers. Overall, both marker systems demonstrated similar and favorable efficiency in investigating the genetic diversity of cannabis ecotypes. For both marker systems, significant differences in banding patterns and the high percentage of polymorphism indicated the high discriminatory power of the primers used and the considerable genetic diversity among the cannabis ecotypes. For both marker systems, analysis of molecular variance indicated that 100% of the total molecular variance was attributable to variation within populations. This pattern may reflect the selection of ecotypes from specific provinces prior to their assignment to populations. Cluster analysis grouped the ecotypes into three major clusters and revealed no clear correspondence between genetic and geographical distances. Based on the observed genetic divergence, crosses between the Qazvin and Afghanistan ecotypes were predicted to have the greatest potential for heterosis. Principal coordinate analysis largely confirmed the results of the cluster analysis, and the distribution of ecotypes across different regions of the biplot further supported the presence of substantial genetic diversity among the cannabis ecotypes. Overall, the cannabis ecotypes investigated in this study exhibited greater genetic diversity than their foreign counterparts.

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