Evaluation of bermudagrass [Cynodon (L.) Rich] accessions with different ploidy levels

Eastern Mediterranean is considered as a center of diversity of Cynodon spp. (Bermudagrass). Phylogenetic analysis from diploids to hexaploids can help our understanding underlying mechanism of polyploidization. Inter-primer binding site (iPBS) markers amplify highly polymorphic long terminal repeat retrotransposons. The objectives were to (1) investigate associations between ploidy level and genetic diversity based on iPBS markers and (2) correlate between similarity matrices of iPBS retrotransposon marker and four nuclear molecular marker systems for Cynodon accessions’ genetic analyses. The samples included 40 bermudagrass genotypes with ploidy series ranging from diploids to hexaploids.