DNA Restriction Fragment Length Variability in Diospyros kaki and Related Diospyros Species

Restriction fragment length analyses of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) were carried out on 11 cultivars of Japanese persimmon (Diospyros kaki Thunb.) and five other Diospyros species. Total genomic DNA was digested with seven restriction endonucleases, Southern blotted, and hybridized with five mtDNA probes (PstI or SalI fragments of Brassica campestris L. mtDNA) and one cpDNA probe [pTBal, BamHI fragment of Nicotiana tabacum (L.) cpDNA]. All Japanese persimmon cultivars displayed identical mtDNA and cpDNA fragment patterns, while polymorphisms among species were observed using both mtDNA and cpDNA probes. A low degree of polymorphism was observed between D. kaki, D. oleifera Cheng., D. kuroiwai Nakai, D. virginiana L., and D. lotus L., suggesting that these species are closely related. A high degree of polymorphism was observed between D. rhombifolia Hemsl. and the other five species, indicating that this species is more distantly related to the other five.