ScienceAsia 28 (2002) : 221-225 |doi: 10.2306/scienceasia1513-1874.2002.28.221

RAPD patterns as a useful tool to differentiate Thai Piper from morphologically alike Japanese Piper

Rachanee Chaveerach^a,*, Hisato Kunitake^b, Suporn Nuchadomrong^c, Nison Sattayasai^c and Haruki Komatsu^d

ABSTRACT: Two species of Piper native to Japan, namely P. kadsura (Choisy) Ohwi and P. retrofractum Vahl were studied in comparison with P. chaba Hunt, a species found in Thailand. Relations among these three Piper species were compared using similarity indexes from morphological investigations and RAPD analysis. Based on morphology, the similarity indexes of the pairs: P. chaba Hunt and P. retrofractum Vahl, P. chaba Hunt and P. kadsura (Choisy) Ohwi, P. retrofractum Vahl and P. kadsura (Choisy) Ohwi. were 71.4%, 38.5% and 46%, respectively. RAPD was carried out using 14 different primers to examine DNA polymorphisms. When the amplified products were analyzed by agarose gel electrophoresis, it was found that P. chaba Hunt and P. retrofractum Vahl were very different in DNA patterns. Similarity indexes of the pairs, P. chaba Hunt and P. retrofractum Vahl, P. chaba Hunt and P. kadsura (Choisy) Ohwi, P. retrofractum Vahl and P. kadsura (Choisy)Ohwi were 9.4%, 9.3% and 22.2%, respectively. The results demonstrate a closer relation between P. retrofractum Vahl and P. kadsura (Choisy) Ohwi than between P. chaba Hunt and P. retrofractum Vahl.

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a Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Khon Kaen University, Thailand.
b Department of Biochemistry and Applied Bioscience, Faculty of Agriculture, Miyazaki University, Japan.
c Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science, Khon Kaen University, Thailand.
d Laboratory of Pomology, School of Agriculture, Kyushu Tokai University, Japan.

*Corresponding author, E-mail: raccha@kku.ac.th

Received 17 Sep 2001, Accepted 15 Feb 2002