Isolation and characterization of microsatellite loci from an endangered tree species, Toona ciliata var. pubescens

Toona ciliata var. pubescens is considered an endangered tree species native to China. In order to help develop a conservation program for this species, we evaluated its genetic diversity and population genetics. We isolated microsatellite DNA loci using streptavidin beads. A genomic library, enriched with microsatellites, was constructed and screened by sequencing. We detected 8 polymorphic microsatellite loci from the tree tissue samples. The population of T. ciliata var. pubescens used in this study is located within the Guanshan National Nature Reserve, Jiangxi Province, China. Sixty-five individuals were collected for the study. The Guanshan population was split into two subpopulations due to terrain. The number of alleles per locus ranged from 2 to 6, with expected heterozygosity from 0.2386 to 0.6772. Four of the 8 loci, except loci Tc02, Tc04, Tc05, and Tc07 showed no significant departure from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. The mean observed heterozygosity was 0.59. The average coefficient of genetic differentiation between the two subpopulations was quite low (F(ST) = 0.0235). The level of gene flow (N(m)) was 10.39, reflecting a high degree of gene flow between the two subpopulations.