Abstract
Premise of the study: Polymorphic microsatellite markers were developed for Phyllostachys edulis (Poaceae), an ecologically and economically important bamboo species in China, to evaluate the genetic diversity and population genetic structure of P. edulis and other Phyllostachys species. • Methods and results: Twenty microsatellite markers were developed and their polymorphisms were tested on 71 samples from three geographically disparate populations. Each locus exhibited between two and 10 alleles with an average of five alleles. Excluding monomorphic loci, observed and expected heterozygosity ranged from zero to one and from 0.041 to 0.676, respectively. • Conclusions: These 20 polymorphic microsatellite loci will be useful for studies on the molecular ecology, population genetics, and conservation of P. edulis.