Evaluation of genetic diversity of some Dendrobium orchids in Southern Vietnam

Abstract

Dendrobium is the genus with large number of species and diversity in morphology and colors. In Vietnam, there are about 107 Dendrobium species, widely distributed in mountainous areas from North to South and even on some coastal islands. Due to this diversity, morphological recognition of Dendrobium taxa is still in challenges and misidentified among species. Because of that, diversity assessment based on molecular genetic features will help with the conservation of the species, management of seed breeding, and serving hybridization for creating new valuable variations. In this study, we conducted a genetic diversity survey of 30 Dendrobium samples in Southern Vietnam. The results identified the exact scientific names of 16 over 16 species using ITS and 10 over 16 species using matK. ITS gave higher resolution in comparison with matK. Hence this locus was recommended as a potential marker for the identification of Dendrobium species. This study also contributes to the identification, selection and breeding of new varieties of Dendrobium species in Vietnam.