Isozyme and Plastid DNA Assessment of Pedigrees of Nineteenth Century Potato Cultivars

Isozyme and ctDNA RFLP patterns were determined for ten historically important potato cultivars (Solanum tuberosum ssp. tuberosuni) in order to relate and confirm their pedigrees. Isozyme polymorphism was detected at 11 of 13 loci examined, whereas only T-type cytoplasm, the predominant ctDNA of S. tuberosum ssp. tuberosum, was observed. Isozyme analysis indicated that potato cultivars previously presumed to be derived from open-pollinated berries of Garnet Chili and Early Rose were in fact the result of hybridizations. In addition, putative pedigrees of Irish Cobbler, White Rose, and Bliss Triumph were not supported. Garnet Chili, the first derivative of Rough Purple Chili, carries allozmyes at Mdh-1 and Pgm-2, which supports the Chilean origin of Rough Purple Chili. The identical ctDNA pattern among the cultivars may indicate a common maternal lineage that traces through Garnet Chili to Rough Purple Chili. The allozyme frequencies estimated from these cultivars provide a base from which subsequent introductions of Solanum species into the ssp. tuberosum gene pool can be assessed.