Identification and purity test of melon cultivars and f1 hybrids using fluidigm-based snp markers

Abstract

In melon (Cucumis melo L.), the grow-out test (GOT) has been traditionally used as a genetic purity test. However, this method is time-consuming, space-demanding, and associated with ambiguous classification of the genotypes. Molecular markers have proved to be an efficient tool in genotyping analyses. In the present study, a total of 96 genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers differentiated 85 melon F1 hybrid plants from their parental lines and six other PT melon breeding lines via high-throughput Fluidigm genotyping. Of these, 39 SNP markers showed polymorphism between the parents. Additionally, SNP analysis and population structure analysis showed that several F1 hybrid plants were associated with outcrossing during the breeding program. Unweighted pair group method with arithmetic average (UPGMA) analysis revealed that most of the contaminated plants were closely sub-grouped with the 7_PT1 breeding line, suggesting possible outcrossing with 7_PT1. By combining with simple DNA extraction, the Fluidigm-based SNP marker analysis proved to be a simple and effective approach for the genetic purity analysis of F1 hybrids and melon cultivars. © 2020 Korean Society for Horticultural Science.