Use of SSR and retrotransposon-based markers to interpret the population structure of native grapevines from southern Italy.

Native grapevines are the quintessential elements of Southern Italy winemaking, and genomic characterization plays a role of primary importance for preservation and sustainable use of these unexploited genetic resources. Among the various molecular techniques available, SSR and retrotransposons-based markers result to be the most valuable for cultivars and biotypes distinctiveness. A total of 62 accessions including 38 local grape cultivars were analyzed with 30 SSR, four REMAP and one IRAP markers to assess their genetic diversity and obtain a complete genomic profiling. The use of VrZAG79, VrZAG112, VVS2, VVMD25 and VVMD5 combined with retrotransposon-based markers proved to be the most discriminating and polymorphic markers for the rapid and unambiguous identification of minority grapevines from Campania region, which is considered one of the most appreciated Italian districts for wine production. Results revealed 58 SSR marker-specific alleles, 22 genotype-specific SSR alleles, and four REMAP and IRAP private bands. Cases of synonymy and homonymy were discovered. In conclusion, we provided evidences that the integrating SSR and retrotransposon-based markers is an effective strategy to assess the genetic diversity of autochthonous grapes, allowing their easy identification.