Correlation between genetic diversity, phenotype and Esculin content in Taraxacum officinale Weber

Attempts were made to correlate the secondary metabolite content with genetic diversity in Taraxacum. In the present study, esculin, one of the important cytotoxic coumarins was analysed in populations of Taraxacum officinale collected from Districts Baramullah (Jammu and Kashmir) and Chamoli Garhwal (Uttarakhand) respectively. The two populations differed in a number of morphological and phenotypic characters. Genetic profiling of esculin quantified individuals was done using RAPD markers for the identification of high esculin yielding genotypes