Genetic diversity of storage proteins in cultivated buckwheat

Prolamin and albumn variations of the storage proteins in 76 cultivated buckwheat accessions (55 accessions of Fagopyrum tataricum, 21 accessions of F. esculentum) from 7 countries were characterized by A-PAGE and SDS-PAGE, respectively, for the purpose of evaluating the genetic diversity of cultivated buckwheat at the level of proteins. A total of 18 prolamin bands were detected, among which 88.89 % bands were polymorphic. The number of albumn bands based on SDS-PAGE observed in accessions ranged from 4 to 10. Most intense bands were in the range of molecular weights from 29 to 97.2 kDa. The average of genetic similarity coefficient based on prolamin bands was 0.784 (in F. tataricum and F. esculentum were 0.892 and 0.681, respectively), while on prolamin and albumn bands was 0.742 (in F. tataricum and F. esculentum were 0.864 and 0.633, respectively). Accessions of F. tataricum and F. esculentum showed significant interspecific variation in the A-PAGE and SDS-PAGE profile of the storage proteins. The cluster analysis indicated that all the accessions could be divided into 3 groups and 3 subgroups. The genetic variations among cultivated buckwheat accessions were associated with their geographic origins in some degree.