Non-mendelian inheritance revealed in a genetic analysis of sexual progeny of Phytophthora cinnamomi with microsatellite markers

We report the development of four microsatellite loci into genetic markers for the diploid oomycete plant pathogen Phytophthora cinnamomi and that (AC)_n and (AG)_n microsatellites are significantly less frequent than in plant and mammal genomes. A minisatellite motif 14 bp long was also discovered. The four microsatellite loci were used to analyze sexual progeny from four separate crosses of P. cinnamomi. A large proportion of non-Mendelian inheritance was observed across all loci in all four crosses, including inheritance of more than two alleles at a locus and noninheritance of alleles from either parent at a locus. The aberrant inheritance is best explained by nondisjunction at meiosis in both the A1 parent and the A2 trisomic parents, resulting in aneuploid progeny. Two loci on the putative trisomic chromosome showed linkage and no loci were linked to mating type. One aneuploid offspring was shown to have lost alleles at two loci following subculture over 4 years, indicating that aneuploid progeny may not be mitotically stable.