Genetic diversity analysis of switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) populations using microsatellites and chloroplast sequences

The agricultural landscape of the United States could soon be changed by planting of switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) cultivars to meet government-mandated targets for lignocellulosic bioenergy production and consumption. This alteration could affect the genetic structure of wild switchgrass populations, which are native to the eastern half of North America through cultivar introgression. In this study, PCR amplification of microsatellite fragments as well as chloroplast gene-specific markers were utilized to quantify the genetic diversity and structure of five native populations and three agronomic fields (hereafter ‘populations’) planted with switchgrass cultivars. Microsatellite polymorphism across all the switchgrass populations ranged from 91.4 to 100 %. Overall, natural switchgrass populations had significantly higher mean genetic diversity than agronomic switchgrass cultivars (0.262 ± 0.102 and 0.201 ± 0.082 respectively, t test p < 0.008). Natural switchgrass populations had significantly higher total genetic diversity within (H_S) and among (H_T) as compared to agronomic switchgrass cultivars. A clear separation of natural and agronomic switchgrass populations was noted using principal component analysis and STRUCTURE analysis. A grouping pattern similar to that obtained in the microsatellite study was observed when chloroplast nucleotide sequence variation was assessed. In the realm of bioenergy sustainability, our results highlight the need to consider the genetic structure of cultivars for bioenergy when they are grown in proximity to native switchgrass populations.