Development and characterization of genomic microsatellite markers in Rhododendron arboreum

Population genetics characteristics are the fundamentals of conservation and management practices. Rhododendron arboreum, a key biodiversity component inhabiting Indian Himalayas, suffers from overexploitation and global warming. Using biotin–streptavidin hybridization technique, 41 microsatellite markers were designed from an enriched DNA library to provide a genetic background and an insight into the population structure of the species. With a range of 2–14 alleles amplified from 38 loci, the populations were reported with observed and expected heterozygosity of 0.167–0.933 and 0.422–0.917 respectively. Some of the loci showed significant deviations from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium and overall no linkage disequilibrium was detected. These markers will support genetic diversity and further genotyping studies in R. arboreum.