Integrative morphological and multilocus molecular analysis reveals intraspecific genetic structuring in Anoectochilus roxburghii (Orchidaceae) from central Vietnam

Integrative morphological and multilocus molecular analysis reveals intraspecific genetic structuring in Anoectochilus roxburghii (Orchidaceae) from central Vietnam | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Integrative morphological and multilocus molecular analysis reveals intraspecific genetic structuring in Anoectochilus roxburghii (Orchidaceae) from central Vietnam Nhi Thi Hoang Ho, Han Ngoc Ho, Hai Thi Hong Truong This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-9016426/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 6 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Anoectochilus is a high-value medicinal orchid threatened by overexploitation and habitat degradation. However, integrated micro-morphological and molecular data for natural Vietnamese populations remain limited. This study provided a comprehensive characterisation of 17 accessions collected from Bach Ma National Park using detailed micro-anatomical analysis, multi-locus DNA barcoding ( ITS , rbcL , psbA-trnH ), and SSR-based genetic profiling. Micro-morphological assessment revealed substantial intra-population differences. Additionally, correlations between anatomical traits and vegetative growth parameters suggested structural contributions to phenotypic variability. DNA barcoding confirmed species identity, Anoectochilus roxburghii , with high similarity (98.92–100%) to reference sequences. Among the tested barcode loci, ITS exhibited the highest discriminatory power. Despite low nucleotide diversity in barcode regions, SSR analysis detected moderate-to-high polymorphism (He ≥ 0.408; PIC ≥ 0.327) and resolved the population into four genetic clusters with similarity coefficients ranging from 0.39 to 0.93. This contrast between barcode homogeneity and SSR diversity showed the evolutionary process within the population. Moreover, these findings could establish a good baseline for conservation management and future marker-assisted breeding of A. roxburghii . Anoectochilus roxburghii DNA barcoding genetic diversity ITS SSR markers species conservation Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 29 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 27 Mar, 2026 Reviewers invited by journal 09 Mar, 2026 Editor assigned by journal 03 Mar, 2026 Submission checks completed at journal 03 Mar, 2026 First submitted to journal 03 Mar, 2026 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-9016426","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":603532749,"identity":"9ed714bc-a60a-4c27-85ac-8eed73644a26","order_by":0,"name":"Nhi Thi Hoang Ho","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAABEElEQVRIiWNgGAWjYBACAwYGNobEBjCbjSGh4gCYBSSZ8WhhRtZyhlgtjDAtjG0HYBK4tZiz9x978HCHjbw5/1ogY96dxH6J3IMHGCqsExskcg9g02LZc5jdIPFMmuHOGe/SDRK3PUucOSMv4QDDmXSglrwErA67kcwmkdh2mHHDjTNmEonbDiduuJFjcICx7XBiA88ZA3xa7CFa5hxO3A/W8o+wlsQN53uAWhqADAmQFiCjgb0Hu5Yzh4Eq29KSN9zgMZNIOHbYeMaZNwYHEo6lG7fh0nK88ZnkzzYb2w3nz5hJ/qg5LNvfnmP84UONtWw/Mw9WLQgggRw8IDYbfvVAwH+AoJJRMApGwSgYoQAAUEJvKtVcBhAAAAAASUVORK5CYII=","orcid":"","institution":"Institute of Biotechnology","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Nhi","middleName":"Thi Hoang","lastName":"Ho","suffix":""},{"id":603532750,"identity":"6c0d897d-787c-43a3-bb43-c436b7b6cedd","order_by":1,"name":"Han Ngoc Ho","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Institute of Biotechnology","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Han","middleName":"Ngoc","lastName":"Ho","suffix":""},{"id":603532751,"identity":"52a40a80-df6b-4ecb-922d-9a40c3dd7cb1","order_by":2,"name":"Hai Thi Hong Truong","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Institute of Biotechnology","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Hai","middleName":"Thi Hong","lastName":"Truong","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2026-03-03 06:08:24","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9016426/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9016426/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":104593392,"identity":"75ca3afc-7f52-4cb5-aec3-22fd8568788d","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-03-13 17:40:08","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":1172548,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"20260303ManuscriptAnoectochilus.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-9016426/v1_covered_b0c5d7a9-c07c-42fb-a204-2d7c02084c54.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Integrative morphological and multilocus molecular analysis reveals intraspecific genetic structuring in Anoectochilus roxburghii (Orchidaceae) from central Vietnam","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"plant-biosystems","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"Learn more about [Plant Biosystems](https://link.springer.com/journal/44473)","snPcode":"44473","submissionUrl":"https://submission.springernature.com/new-submission/44473/3?","title":"Plant Biosystems","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"Springer Hybrid","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false},"keywords":"Anoectochilus roxburghii, DNA barcoding, genetic diversity, ITS, SSR markers, species conservation","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9016426/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9016426/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003e \u003cem\u003eAnoectochilus\u003c/em\u003e is a high-value medicinal orchid threatened by overexploitation and habitat degradation. 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