Genetic Characterization of Green Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) Accessions from Turkey with SCAR and SSR Markers

Characterization, conservation, and utilization of genetic resources is essential for the sustainability in agriculture. Plant genetic resources are important for breeding efforts designed for the generation of new cultivars or for the improvement of existing ones. Green bean has been cultivated extensively in Turkey giving rise to local accessions through selection over time and adaptation to various environmental conditions. The objective of the present study was to determine the genetic relationships of green bean accessions collected from Kirsehir Province of Turkey, located at the central Anatolia. Within a population of 275 green bean accessions, 50 accessions were selected on the basis of morphological observations for further evaluation with SSR and STS/SCAR markers together with 4 reference cultivars of Andean and Mesoamerican origin. SSR markers selected on the basis of high polymorphism information content revealed the genetic relatedness of selected green bean accessions. STS/SCAR markers associated with bean anthracnose, common bacterial blight, white mold, halo blight, and phaseolin protein demonstrated the inheritance of resistance traits of local accessions at the selected loci. These findings may help better utilize genetic resources and furthermore are expected to facilitate forthcoming breeding studies for the generation of novel cultivars well adapted to the region.