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Genetic variation and differentiation in Juniperus excelsa M. Bieb. populations in Turkey

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Abstract

Genetic variation within and among six populations of Juniperus excelsa M. Bieb., in a common garden in Lakes District of Turkey, was analyzed using four nuclear microsatellite primer pairs originally developed for J. communis. A total of five loci were observed as Jc037 amplified two distinct size ranges. The number of alleles observed for the species varied from 2 to 13, with an average of 4.5 alleles per locus. The mean expected heterozygosity (H e) of populations was 0.584, after correction for null alleles. The mean F IS value (−0.014) was close to zero showing no significant deviation from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium. A low level of genetic differentiation was observed among populations (F ST = 0.028; p < 0.001) and Nei’s genetic distance ranged from 0.014 to 0.120 between population pairs. Furthermore, there was no significant correlation between genetic distances on the one hand and geographic distances and trait differentiation on the other hand. However, the eastern populations Beyşehir and Sorgun showed very similar genotypic structures and were differentiated from all other populations. A continuous monitoring of phenotypic traits and the association between nucleotide variation in functional genes and adaptive traits such as drought and frost tolerance of J. excelsa populations in common gardens will be useful to design effective conservation strategies in the future.

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Acknowledgments

The study was supported by the Council of Higher Education of Turkey under a post-doctoral fellowship to Dr. Cengiz Yücedağ at Michigan Technological University (MTU), Houghton, MI, USA. Funding for the study came from start-up funds of MTU to Oliver Gailing. We would like to express our thanks to Mr. Durmuş Yücedağ and Forest Engineer Suat Altınsoy for assistance in the field works.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Bartın University, 74100, Bartın, Turkey

    Cengiz Yücedağ

  2. School of Forest Resources and Environmental Science, Michigan Technological University, 1400 Townsend Drive, Houghton, MI, 49931, USA

    Cengiz Yücedağ & Oliver Gailing

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  1. Cengiz Yücedağ
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  2. Oliver Gailing
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Correspondence to Cengiz Yücedağ.

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Communicated by F. Canovas.

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Yücedağ, C., Gailing, O. Genetic variation and differentiation in Juniperus excelsa M. Bieb. populations in Turkey. Trees 27, 547–554 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00468-012-0807-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00468-012-0807-3

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