Molecular Markers in Bamboos: Understanding Reproductive Biology, Genetic Structure, Interspecies Diversity, and Clonal Fidelity for Conservation and Breeding

Molecular markers have revolutionized analyses in population genetics, enabling precise estimates of the amount of genetic variability and how it is distributed within and among populations. The high diversity of bamboos, distributed throughout the world and of high economic relevance, has deserved several studies on molecular characterization. This chapter describes how distinct categories of molecular markers, such as isozymes, RAPD, AFLP, microsatellites, and SNP, have enabled the analysis of population genetic processes, assessments of the genetic diversity, and structure of natural populations and selected cultivars of bamboo species. One important application is their power of phylogenetic inference, enabling the distinction of the diverse set of bamboo species. With the genomic technologies, gene families have been characterized, mainly for Phyllostachys edulis, which has its genome sequenced and deposited to databases, enabling the detection of markers related with environmental constraints. As vegetative propagation is a common mechanism in bamboos and their cultivation relies on this strategy, molecular markers have been important for attesting genetic fidelity to their original source of propagules. Altogether, we provide a panorama of several applications of molecular markers to bamboo conservation and breeding.