Genotyping Vitis vinifera L. cultivars of Cyprus by microsatellite analysis

Abstract

Twelve native Vitis vinifera L. cultivars of Cyprus were genotyped at 11 highly polymorphic microsatellite markers. The obtained microsatellite allelic profiles allowed precise identification and discrimination of all tested cultivars. Each cultivar had a unique allelic profile. The low PI value (5.1 x 10-9) demonstrated the high descriptive power of the chosen markers for the investigated set of grapevines. Three cases of synonymy of Cyprus cultivars with cultivars grown in other countries under different names were verified: (1) Cyprus Malaga and Muscat of Alexandria, (2) Cyprus Lefkas and Greek Verdzami, and (3) Cyprus Moscato, Bulgarian Tamyanka and Italian Moscato Bianco. The homonymy of Cyprus Sideritis and Greek Sideritis as well as of Cyprus Mavro and Bulgarian Mavrud was shown not to rely on genetic similarity.