Molecular evidence for a single genetic clone of invasive Arundo donax in the United States

Arundo donax (giant reed) is an aggressive invasive weed of riparian habitats throughout the southern half of the United States from California to Maryland. Native to Asia, the species is believed to have been initially introduced into North America from the Mediterranean region although subsequent...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Aquatic botany 2008-02, Vol.88 (2), p.113-120
Main Authors: Ahmad, Riaz, Liow, Pui-Sze, Spencer, David F., Jasieniuk, Marie
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal and plant ecology
Animal, plant and microbial ecology
Arundo donax
Autoecology
Biological and medical sciences
Clonal species
Freshwater
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Genetic diversity
Giant reed
Invasive species
Plants and fungi
Riparian habitat
SRAP marker
TE-based marker
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Summary:Arundo donax (giant reed) is an aggressive invasive weed of riparian habitats throughout the southern half of the United States from California to Maryland. Native to Asia, the species is believed to have been initially introduced into North America from the Mediterranean region although subsequent introductions were from multiple regions. To provide insight into the potential for biological control of A. donax, genetic variation in plants sampled from a wide geographical area in the United States was analyzed using Sequence Related Amplification Polymorphism (SRAP) and transposable element (TE)-based molecular markers. Invasive individuals from 15 states as well as four populations in southern France were genetically fingerprinted using 10 SRAP and 12 TE-based primer combinations. With the exception of simple mutations detected in four plants, A. donax exhibited a single multilocus DNA fingerprint indicating a single genetic clone. The genetic uniformity of invasive A. donax suggests that classical biological control of the species could be successful. A lack of genetic diversity in the invaded range simplifies identification of native source populations to search for natural enemies that could be used as biocontrol agents.
ISSN:0304-3770
1879-1522
DOI:10.1016/j.aquabot.2007.08.015