Conservation genetics and population diversity of Erigeron breviscapus (Asteraceae), an important Chinese herb

Erigeron breviscapus (Vant.) Hand.-Mazz. is an important Chinese herb in treating cerebral infarction and heart diseases, which is increasingly endangered because of over-harvesting and habitat fragmentation. We applied AFLP method to investigate its genetic diversity and population structure in order to make efficient conservation strategies. The results indicated a relatively low intraspecific genetic diversity and feeble genetic differentiation among populations, and no Evolutionarily Significant Units (ESUs) was detected. The relationships between population genetic diversity and populations' distributions (latitude, longitude and altitude) were tested, and the genetic diversity of each population (H_POP) positively correlated with the populations' distribution altitudes. The suitable germinating and growing conditions and less human disturbance at the higher latitude regions might be attributable for this phenomenon. For conservation purpose, an ex situ conservation measure for the populations of E. breviscapus with large size in higher altitude regions should be conserved in priority.