IDENTIFICATION OF RASPBERRY CULTIVARS BY NONRADIOACTIVE DNA FINGERPRINTING

Characterization and identification of 13 red raspberry (Rubus idaeus L.) and two purple raspberry (R. xneglectus Peck) cultivars were obtained by nonradioactive genetic fingerprinting. DNA from leaves was digested with Hae III and Hinf I restriction enzymes and probed with alkaline phosphatase-labeled oligonucleotide. All tested cultivars could be identified by a unique band pattern. No differences were noted within cultivars when the reproducibility of the fingerprints was evaluated by analyzing the effects of age of the raspberry plantation, developmental stage during the growing season, or position of the sampled leaf on stem. These results suggest that simple nonradioactive DNA fingerprinting can be routinely used to identify raspberry cultivars.