Genetic diversity in natural populations of Jacaranda decurrens Cham. determined using RAPD and AFLP markers

Jacaranda decurrens (Bignoniaceae) is an endemic species of the Cerrado with validated antitumoral activity. The genetic diversity of six populations of J. decurrens located in the State of São Paulo was determined in this study by using molecular markers for randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) and amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP). Following optimization of the amplification reaction, 10 selected primers generated 78 reproducible RAPD fragments that were mostly (69.2%) polymorphic. Two hundred and five reproducible AFLP fragments were generated by using four selected primer combinations; 46.3% of these fragments were polymorphic, indicating a considerable level of genetic diversity. Analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) using these two groups of markers indicated that variability was strongly structured amongst populations. The unweighted pair group method with arithmatic mean (UPGMA) and Pearson's correlation coefficient (RAPD -0.16, p = 0.2082; AFLP 0.37, p = 0.1006) between genetic matrices and geographic distances suggested that the population structure followed an island model in which a single population of infinite size gave rise to the current populations of J. decurrens, independently of their spatial position. The results of this study indicate that RAPD and AFLP markers were similarly efficient in measuring the genetic variability amongst natural populations of J. decurrens. These data may be useful for developing strategies for the preservation of this medicinal species in the Cerrado

Evaluation of the spreading of isolated bacterias from dental consulting-room using RAPD technique

The aim of this study was to investigate the spreading of isolates recovered in dental office environment using Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA technique (RAPD). The bacteria isolated and identificated from the surfaces of different dental consulting-room and staff were obtained in two moments (47 isolates total). For Klebsiella sp, Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli isolates, groups with high coefficient of similarity (Sab) were obtained. Proteus vulgaris and Hafnia alvei showed lower Sab, showing however greater relationships between individual species. It was possible to determine that the majority of the isolates of individual species were closely related.Colegio de Farmacéuticos de la Provincia de Buenos Aire