Characterization of newly developed microsatellite loci in the stemmed yellow violet,Viola pubescens (Violaceae)

Viola pubescens is a perennial herb with a mixed mating system involving the production of both open, chasmogamous flowers and closed, cleistogamous flowers. Using a nonradioactive protocol, 12 microsatellite primers that amplified loci with perfect and imperfect repeats were developed in the species. As examined in five populations of V. pubescens using multiplex reactions, all loci exhibited polymorphism with an average of 5.4 alleles. Most primers also amplified in 12 additional Viola species and one cultivar, revealing the possibility of wide applicability across the genus. This is the first known report of microsatellite loci developed in Viola and the Violaceae.