Insights Into the Almond Domestication History.

ABSTRACT: Understanding crop domestication offers crucial insights into the evolutionary processes that drive population divergence and adaptation. It also informs the identification of genetically diverse wild germplasm, which is essential for breeding and conservation efforts. While domestication has been extensively studied in many Mediterranean fruit trees, the evolutionary history of the almond (Prunus dulcis) remains comparatively underexplored. To address this, we analyzed 209 wild and cultivated almond accessions sampled across Eurasia and genotyped with 23 microsatellite markers. Using population genetics and coalescent-based inference, we reconstructed the domestication history of P. dulcis and its relationships with wild relatives. Bayesian clustering revealed four genetical

SUBMITTER: Decroocq S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12399410 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature