Polymorphism and Phylogenetic Relationships in Bamboo

Abstract

A breakthrough in plant systematics began to develop at the end of the nineteenth century, since the development of molecular systematics. This method is considered to contribute to supporting the phylogenetic framework in the plant world. Molecular studies are expected to strengthen existing systematics, not replace them. Until the late 1980s, the bamboo classification system was still based on morphological data. In the early 1990s, identification was started using molecular markers. This identification can provide important information in overcoming various taxonomic constraints. It can determine the taxon level of a type appropriately and corresponds to taxonomic data based on morphological characters. Scientists use various molecular markers to look for similarities or differences between species. Some of the molecular markers used are amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP), random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD), sequence characterized amplified regions (SCARs), start codon targeted (SCoT), inter-primer binding site (iPBS), and simple sequence repeats (SSR). In addition to molecular markers, bamboo taxonomy is also carried out using DNA sequence-based methods. This method includes sequences of organelle genes and nucleus genes. Furthermore, several chloroplast genes were also found to form molecular relationships in Poaceae. This chapter is aiming to provide a piece of up-to-date information on molecular markers applied in different bamboo species to evaluate the genetic relationships.