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High levels of genetic divergence and inbreeding in populations of cupuassu (Theobroma grandiflorum)

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Abstract

Theobroma grandiflorum (cupuassu) is an important fruit tree native to the Brazilian Amazon. Establishing the genetic diversity and structure of populations is critical to define long-term strategies for cupuassu conservation presently threatened by rapid deforestation. Three natural populations collected at the putative center of diversity, three groups of accessions established at a germplasm collection, and one derived from commercial plantings were analyzed. The genetic diversity was assessed using 21 polymorphic microsatellite loci originally developed for Theobroma cacao, disclosing a total of 113 alleles. The estimated genetic diversity parameters averaged over cupuassu populations (A = 3.53 alleles per locus; H e = 0.426; H o = 0.346) were lower than the values reported for other Neotropical tree species. The three natural populations presented a positive and significant fixation index (f), ranging from 0.133 to 0.234. Cupuassu apparently adhered to a general pattern of genetic diversity structure of some Neotropical tree species occurring at low densities, with a low intrapopulation genetic diversity and important levels of endogamy, possibly due to biparental inbreeding derived from the presence of spatial genetic structure in the populations. A high level of genetic divergence was detected among the natural populations (θ p = 0.301), a strong differentiation caused by limited gene flow, and suggesting that human interference in spreading and/or stimulating plantings might have had a smaller effect than expected. The approximate location of the T. grandiflorum center of diversity could not be confirmed by analyzing natural populations from the putative region.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank for the financial support from the Brazilian National Research Council (CNPq), International Foundation of Science (IFS), and FAPESP.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Embrapa Amazônia Oriental, Tv. Dr. Enéas Pinheiro s/n, CP 48, Belém, PA, 66095-100, Brazil

    Rafael M. Alves

  2. Instituto Florestal de São Paulo, CP 1322, São Paulo, SP, 01059-970, Brazil

    Alexandre M. Sebbenn

  3. Centro de Energia Nuclear na Agricultura, Universidade de São Paulo, Av. Centenário 303, CP 96, Piracicaba, SP, 13400-970, Brazil

    Angela S. Artero & Antonio Figueira

  4. Instituto de Pesquisa da Amazônia, Manaus, CP 478, Manaus, AM, 66011-970, Brazil

    Charles Clement

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  1. Rafael M. Alves
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  2. Alexandre M. Sebbenn
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  3. Angela S. Artero
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  4. Charles Clement
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  5. Antonio Figueira
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Correspondence to Antonio Figueira.

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Communicated by D. Grattapaglia

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Alves, R.M., Sebbenn, A.M., Artero, A.S. et al. High levels of genetic divergence and inbreeding in populations of cupuassu (Theobroma grandiflorum). Tree Genetics & Genomes 3, 289–298 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11295-006-0066-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11295-006-0066-9

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