Genetic differentiation refers to the distribution of the variability among and within populations, provenances or other grouping types. This knowledge is important to establish collection strategies, conservation and germplasm management of any species. In this work, the genetic differentiation was evaluated among provenances of açaí tree from Embrapa Eastern Amazon germplasm collection using RAPD and SSR markers. DNAs of 107 accessions, representing 17 different geographic regions were used in PCR reactions with 28 RAPD primers and seven SSR primers. The obtained data was submitted to analyses of molecular variance (AMOVA) with unbalanced hierarchical structure. High levels of genetic differentiation were registered among provenances, with 0.301 for the dominant marker (RAPD) and 0.242 for the codominante (SSR). For the two markers, AMOVA showed a great variability within the provenances (above 69%). The small sampling size of Maranhão provenances might have contributed to the significant differentiation among these provenances. The data obtained by these markers were in agreement with in what concerns the distribution of the genetic variation among and within the provenances of this palm tree.
Amazon; Germplasm; Euterpe; Palm; Genetic variation
