This study was conducted to analyze genetic diversity in 15 natural populations of Iranian Agropyron pectiniforme using morphological traits and RAPDs (Random Amplification of Polymorphic DNA) molecular markers. Five primers out of the 10 were highly polymorphic and produced 128 polymorphic bands ranging in length of 500 to 2200 bp. According to AMOVA (Analysis of Molecular Variance) results, there was higher genetic variation between populations (53%) than within (47%) them. Cluster analysis based on RAPD data categorized the populations into five clusters. PCoA (Principal Coordinates Analysis) results showed the first four coordinates accounted for 95% of the total variation. The scatter of genotypes based on the first two components was agreement with cluster analysis results. There was non-significant mantel correlation coefficient between molecular and geographical data indicating classification of A. pectiniforme based on RAPD marker was not in accord with geographical distribution. With regard to morphological traits, characters including plant height and the number of stems per plants are suitable parameters for selection of potential parents in the breeding programs. The non-significant mantel correlation coefficient between molecular and morphological marker was observed, then suggested that the two marker systems give different estimates of genetic relations among populations. Finally, our findings demonstrate the feasibility of the RAPD technique for quantifying genetic distances among A. pectiniforme populations. It was concluded that, there is sufficient genetic variation between Iranian populations of Agropyron pectiniforme which these genotypes can be useful for germplasm improvement and cultivar development. Manuscript profile

With regard to the high amount of secondary metabolite in Mentha piperita, we evaluated two different methods for total RNA isolation on peppermint leaves. These methods were used to detect the best of all, which provides high-quality RNA. RNX-plus and modified RNX-plus (1-5) methods are used. The visualization of clear 28S RNA and 18S RNA bands on 1% agarose gels was used to check RNA quality. In the changed RNX-plus method (number 2), the purity of 28S and 18S rRNA was highly acceptable when assessed in an agarose denaturing gel. This method was the best one for RNA isolation with good quality. Therefore, this method is helpful for high-quality and quantity RNA isolation from Mentha piperita. The final analysis to get the best RNA isolation methods is gene expression analysis using tubulin primer as an internal gene. The obtained results demonstrated that it is possible to extract total RNA of reasonable quality and quality from Mentha piperita rich in polysaccharides and polyphenols by using modified RNX protocol number 2. Manuscript profile