Nalan Yildirim Dogan1*, Ali kandemir1 and Etem osma1
Uechtritzia armena Freyn (Asteraceae) which is an endemic species for Turkey grows in the provinces of Gumushane, Erzurum and Artvin. In this study, its distribution, ecological features and threats are discussed. Its local future is treated. The distribution of the species is related to P. sylvestris var. hamata. It grows in the northern aspect in P. sylvestris var. hamata forest. The results of the soil analysis showed that the soil type of the species is loamy with clay. The pH of the soil varies between 6-7.52. The percentage of organic matter in the soil is between 2.9 to 4.24. In addition, genetic diversity among populations was determined by RAPD. 16 primer generated a total of 127 bands, with a mean of 7.94 bands per primer. RAPD analyses showed various band sizes, which ranged from 250 to 3000 bp. Mean polymorphic locus ratios were determined as 92.13% considering four populations. The percentage of polymorphic bands for this species was 96.21%. The Nei’s gene diversity (H) ranged from 0.166 to 0.183, Shannon’s Information Index (I) differed from 0.258 to 0.299, while Nei’s gene diversity (H) varied from 0.166 to 0.183. Genetic distances between populations ranged from 0.981 to 0.201. Cluster analysis showed correlation between genetic and geographic distance.