Genetic diversity in an almond germplasm collection: application of a chemometric approach.

摘要

Genetic diversity of the international almond (Prunus amygdalus Batsch.) germplasm collection located at CITA, Zaragoza, Spain, was undertaken applying a chemometric approach. Oil and major fatty acids were determined in 77 almond cultivars from 12 countries, evidencing their high genetic variability. Clustering of cultivars from similar countries would suggest the existence of different almond populations, but the present results clearly show that there is no separation of cultivars according to their geographical origin. The chemical composition of the almond kernel could be used to study the genetic diversity of almond cultivars, but not their evolution around the world. The highest values of oleic and lowest of linoleic acids were found in 'Bonifacio' and 'Mollese' from Italy, 'Yosemite' from USA and 'Pestaneta' from Portugal. These cultivars could be incorporated as parents into almond breeding programmes to increase kernel quality.