Genetic diversity and population structure of Ethiopian taro Colocasia esculenta (L.) Schott) as revealed by SSR markers

Fifteen polymorphic SSR markers revealed Ethiopian taro (Colocasia esculenta) has weak but significant population differentiation ({Phi}PT = 0.016, P = 0.016) across 119 accessions.

• Why it matters: Genetic diversity and structure of Ethiopian taro are poorly characterized, limiting informed conservation and breeding use of local germplasm.
• What they did: The study genotyped 119 accessions (79 farmer-collected, 40 from EBI) from SERS, SWEPRS, and Oromia using 15 polymorphic SSR markers, yielding 199 polymorphic loci and diversity metrics (PIC, Ne, He) plus AMOVA and clustering.
• The result: AMOVA attributed 98% of molecular variation within populations and 2% among populations; clustering showed extensive overlap with no clear geographic structuring, while all 119 accessions had unique multilocus genotypes.

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