Lush Susaj

Last Home for the Wild Grapevine: Characterisation and Conservation of Vitis Sylvestris in Albania Lush Susaj

The wild grapevine is a plant not properly studied, a plant forgotten independently from the immense importance for the science of viticulture. The preservation of wild populations of V. sylvestris is essential for the maintenance of genetic variability and to resist genetic erosion. The ECPGR Woking Group recommended that: ?Each country should maintain its own traditional varieties in national or regional ampelographic collections and should also protect Vitis sylvestris in situ?. Since 2003, research has been launched in order to identify, map, describe and characterize the populations of wild grapevine in northern Albania. In this study, three populations found in Mat, Drin and Shkreli valleys represented with total of 19 individual plants have been the subject of molecular characterization using 9 SSR markers. Relevant population statistics parameters such as average number of alleles, allele frequencies, He, Ho, PIC, as well as F-Statistics measures (FIS and FST) were calculated. Also, cluster analysis was carried out based on Dice similarity indices calculated for each possible pair-wise combination of analyzed genotypes.