SSR-based genetic diversity assessment among Tunisian winter barley and relationship with morphological traits

For studying genetic diversity caused by selection for adaptation and end-use, 17 microsatellites (SSR), representative of the barley genome, were used in 26 barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) accessions and cultivars in Tunisia. The accessions/cultivars originate from different geographic regions and are of different end-use. For the 15 polymorphic SSR, the mean number of alleles per locus was 3.6 and the average polymorphism information content was 0.45. Cluster analysis based on SSR data and on morphological data clearly differentiate the genotypes according to their type (local landraces vs. varieties), row-number and end-use. The correlation between both diversity measures was highly significant (r = 0.25, p < 10-5) and the correspondence between the clustering based on SSR and morphological data was relatively good. Our results show the large genetic diversity of the Tunisian barley cultivars and the association of this diversity with adaptation traits.