Construction Of A Preliminary Genetic Linkage Map Of Yerba Mate (Ilex Paraguariensis)

The "yerba mate" leaves are used to make an infusion named "mate tea", which is deeply rooted in the historical, social and cultural tradition of South America. Its sustainable use is of strategic significance to several countries of this region, particularly Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay. Our objective was to establish a segregating population and build a framework genetic map, in order to contribute to the future identification of loci associated with desirable traits. Two genetically divergent genotypes with contrasting drought tolerance capacity were selected as female and male parents. A "pseudo-test cross" F-1 population of 700 individuals, with potential to be extended to 1900 individuals, was produced after controlled crossing followed by embryo rescue. A subset of 117 plants was used to produce a framework genetic map. Five AFLP primer combinations and 16 RAPD primers generated 119 informative markers, out of which 68.9% showed the expected Mendelian segregation values. Linkage analyses were carried out by using Joinmap 3.0. Markers originated from each progenitor were independently evaluated to generate a female map including 11 linkage groups and a male one with 16 linkage groups. Total genetic distances covered by the female and male maps were 223 cM and 678 cM, respectively. This work allowed the establishment of a yerba mate segregating population and the construction of a preliminary genetic map, which will be used as a framework for the future identification of markers linked to genes of interest.