DNA Fingerprinting and Biochemical Characterization of Red Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) Genotypes from Kurram Agency, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

Abstract Background Red bean ( Phaseolus vulgaris L.) is an important grain legume both nutritionally and economically significant, however, the genomic resources of the landraces grown in the combined districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, are poorly documented. The conservation and utilization of the indigenous genotypes require a first step of characterizing their genetic diversity and biochemical composition. Materials and methods Nine Start Codon Targeted (SCoT) markers were used to fingerprint 34 red bean genotypes from Kurram Agency. Total phenolic content (TPC) was measured using the Folin-Ciocalteu method, while the antioxidant activity was measured by the DPPH radical-scavenging assay. Genetic relationships were given by UPGMA cluster analysis of Nei and Li's similarity coefficients. Results A total of 982 bands were amplified in the nine SCoT primers (mean number of bands/primers 109.1). Polymorphism Information Content (PIC) values were between 0.192 (SCoT 17) and 0.464 (SCoT 15), with an average value of 0.366. The 34 genotypes were separated into three clusters using UPGMA clustering: Cluster I (28 genotypes), Cluster II (the single divergent genotype RBK15) and Cluster III (RBK22, RBK24, RBK25, RBK26, RBK28). Biochemical profiling showed wide variation in TPC, from 10.794 ug/ml (RBK11) to 343.413 ug/ml (RBK13), and in DPPH scavenging activity, from 7.648 ug/ml (RBK3) to 52.462 ug/ml (RBK29), with RBK14 (51.467 ug/ml) and RBK28 (51.829 ug/ml) also ranking among the most active. Conclusion The genetic diversity of this germplasm collection was fairly high but well structured with the help of SCoT markers. The significant difference in the phenolics content and antioxidant activity suggests that RBK13, RBK29, RBK14, and RBK28 are potential varieties to be utilized for incorporating these nutrients into the food, and demonstrates the nutritional potential of Pakistan's indigenous red bean landraces for breeding purposes.