Genetically stable, individual-specific differences in hypervariable DNA in Norway spruce, detected by hybridization to a phage M13 probe

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Abstract
DNA fingerprinting techniques have significantly improved the resolution of the analysis of genetic polymorphisms in major eukaryotic taxa. The techniques are based on the use of specific DNA probes, which hybridize to families of related minisatellite loci that are dispersed in the genomes of a range of eukaryotes. These sequences are highly variable as a result of a variation in the numbers of a core repeat sequence at each locus. We wanted to establish whether one such probe, the DNA of the bacteriophage M13, could be used to detect hypervariable loci in the conifer Norway spruce, Piceaabies (L.) Karst., and to examine if the method could detect genetic differences at the level of populations and (or) individual trees. The results show that hypervariable minisatellite sequences that hybridize to the M13 probe are present in Norway spruce. The minisatellite sequences are stably inherited, and the variability within the species is sufficiently high to allow the distinction of different individuals. The differences between populations are of the same order of magnitude as those between trees within populations. The method is potentially useful in population genetics research on conifers, as well as in breeding programs.

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