Genetic Polymorphism of Tylophora Species of Goa as Revealed by RAPD.

Tylophora indica is an important medicinal plant and is used against dysentery, diarrhoea, humoral and bronchial asthma, allergic rhinitis, cold and cough. The plant is also known for anticancer properties. Other species of Tylophora predominantly found in Goa is T. dalzelli. It has been reported as a local herb for the treatment of asthma. Hence the main objective of this study is to know the genetic relationship in these two species. To achieve this, randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) was performed. A total of six Tylophora variants were collected from various regions of Goa and analyzed using RAPD with OPF 1-10 primers. Genetic similarities were determined between and within the collected species through Jaccard's coefficient system. RAPD primers generated 39 amplification products, of which all 39 were polymorphic. Results from cluster analysis and linkage distance, indicate 38% genetic similarity at the interspecifc level between T. indica whereas 10% between two T. dalzelli variants. UPGMA cluster analysis revealed similar results.Our study indicated that T. indica collected from Valpoi was the most diverse one among all the samples.These results based on the molecular markers have shown high genetic diversity among thecollected species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]