Abstract
The objective of this study was to classify bottle gourd (Lagenaria siceraria) varieties by random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis and cluster analysis to select the varieties to be preserved. A total of 24 bottle gourd varieties including 5 varieties bred by Tochigi Prefecture were analyzed. Forty-four primers produced 31 scorable, variable RAPD markers within bottle gourd varieties. Only 4 polymorphic markers were produced in 10 varieties derived from Tochigi Prefecture. These results suggest that these 10 varieties are closely related with each other, but not with the introduced varieties. For preservation, the varieties derived from Tochigi Prefecture should be classified into each phenotype and then representative varieties preserved. Introduced varieties should be preserved for those from wide areas.
