Geographic distribution of genetic variability of Fagus sylvatica L. in Southern Italian populations

The actual distribution of Fagus sylvatica L. in Southern Italy has been influenced by past events such as glaciations. The aim of the present work is to study the Southern Italian populations by: (i) PCR/RFLP markers of chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) to determine the geographical distribution of haplotypes, and (ii) RAPD markers of the total genome to evaluate the inter- and intra-population genetic variability. Thirty populations have been sampled along the natural range of F. sylvatica in Southern Italy. The analysis of cpDNA data showed that in the south of Italy: (i) more than one refuge nucleus was present, and (ii) genetic variability is high both at inter and intrapopulation level. This is corroborated by the molecular variance analysis of the RAPD markers. The genetic variability resulted higher within populations than among populations, resulting in the latter parameter being substantially higher than other reported in literature for European stands of beech.