The change of the essential oil content of urtica dioica l. taxa, having distribution in natural areas in Malatya province, based on the genetic and environmental factors

Aim: To determine the presence of changes in the content of essential oils in the above-ground parts and roots of Urtica dioica species in Malatya province, based on genetic and environmental differences. Material and Method: 10 of the 15 different populations found in Malatya province were used in morphology, essential oil and molecular studies. For morphological studies, totally 53 characters including 48 quantitative ones and 5 qualitative ones, were determined. The essential oils of the dried samples were extracted by using hydro-distillation method. In determining the chemical components in the essential oil samples, degas chromatography mass spectrophotometer (GS-MS) was used. The DNAs obtained from each population separately were used and PCR application was performed using RAPD and SRAP methods. Using the obtained all data, the UPGMA trees in the form of cladogram and phlogram demonstrating the phylogenetic relationships between the populations was obtained through PAUP software. Results: When the morphological characteristics were compared, 4 different groups were obtained using a total of 26 characters including 23 quantitative ones and 3 qualitative ones. As a result of the studies on the essential oils, 338 different chemical components were determined. While 144 main components were found in the above-ground parts, 129 main components were found in the roots. It was determined in the molecular studies that 32 of totally 123 bands obtained with 10 RAPD primers were polymorphic and 18 of totally 60 bands obtained with 9 SRAP primers were polymorphic. Conclusion: When the Malatya populations of Urtica dioica subsp. dioica taxon were compared in terms of essential oil components, it was observed that there were groupings based on the height. It was determined that Battalgazi population, with a distribution under 1000 meters, was different from the other populations based on the essential oil components. As a result of the molecular studies conducted using the RAPD and SRAP primers, a relationship of the difference among the populations with essential oils could not be determined. Keywords: Malatya, RAPD, SRAP, Essential oil, Urtica