Genetic structure of the threatened Dipterocarpus costatus populations in lowland tropical rainforests of southern Vietnam

• Published in: Genetics and molecular research 2016-10, Vol.15 (4)
• Main Authors: Duc, N M, Duy, V D, Xuan, B T T, Thang, B V, Ha, N T H, Tam, N M
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Conservation of Natural Resources; Dipterocarpaceae - genetics; Dipterocarpaceae - growth & development; Endangered Species; Genetic Drift; Genetics, Population; Inbreeding; Microsatellite Repeats - genetics; Phylogeny; Rainforest; Vietnam
• ISSN: 1676-5680; 1676-5680
• DOI: 10.4238/gmr15048821

Dipterocarpus costatus is an endangered species restricted to the lowland forests of southern Vietnam. Habitat loss and over-exploitation of D. costatus wood are the major threats to this species. We investigated the level of genetic variability within and among populations of D. costatus in order to provide guidelines for the conservation, management, and restoration of this species to the Forest Protection Department, Vietnam. Nine microsatellite markers were used to analyze 114 samples from four populations representing the natural range of D. costatus in southeast Vietnam. We indicated the low allelic diversity (N = 2.3) and low genetic diversities with an average observed and expected heterozygosity of 0.130 and 0.151, respectively, in the lowland forests of southeast Vietnam. The low genetic diversity might be a consequence of inbreeding within the small and isolated populations of D. costatus owing to its habitat loss and over-exploitation. All populations deviated from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium showing reduced heterozygosity. Alleles were lost from the populations by genetic drift. Genetic differentiation among populations was high (average pairwise F = 0.405), indicating low gene flow (