Randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) for evaluating genetic relationships among varieties of guinea fowl.

The present study investigated the use of randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) in estimating the intra and inter varietal genetic variation in three varieties of guinea fowl (Lavender, Pearl and White). The estimates, measured as band sharing were high for within population (0.946-0.971) and between population (0.990-0.999) genetic similarity. The respective estimates were 0.898-0.929 and 0.923-0.928 when estimated as frequency of occurrence of bands. The results indicated a very low level of intra and inter varietal genetic variation in these guinea fowl varieties, which in turn suggested the low level of genetic variation in these populations. The possible reasons for this high genetic similarity has been discussed.