Analysis of Genetic Diversity and Relationships of Local Walnut Populations in the Western Caspian Region of the North Caucasus

Common walnut (Juglans regia L.) is a valuable nut crop widely distributed within the temperate climate zone. It has several secondary centers of origin associated with refugia formed during the LGM (Last Glacial Maximum) period, one of which was presumably located in the Caucasus region. Currently, walnut populations of the Caucasus are studied fragmentarily, especially in the northeast of the region. Our study is aimed at investigating the genetic diversity, population structure and possible processes of walnut introduction in the Caspian region of the Northeast Caucasus (Dagestan). Genotyping using 11 SSR markers was performed for 158 samples from local walnut populations. Also, to identify the facts of introduction, 42 varieties of different geo-graphical origin were added to research. The genetic diversity of SSR markers in the analysis of population varied from 4 to 20 alleles per locus, with an average value of 9.82. Analysis of the genetic structure revealed significant genetic differences between the subpopulations of the Mountain and Flatland Dagestan. Presumably, the structure of the gene pool could have been in-fluenced by terrain factors and ethnocultural characteristics. Subpopulations of Flatland Dagestan have an intermediate position between the western cultivars and the gene pool of Mountain Dagestan, the populations of which showed significant genetic isolation. In the studied samples set of population selections, the established facts of introduction were rare. We have suggested that a significant part of the gene pool of walnut from Mountain Dagestan has an autochthonous origin from plants that survived the LGM in the Caucasian refugia. The results of the work are the basis for further studies of the local gene pool and verification of our hypothesis about the presence of an indigenous germplasm preserved in this region from the period the LGM.