Development of a single-nucleotide-polymorphism marker for specific authentication of Korean ginseng ( Meyer) new cultivar "G-1".

Background: Korean ginseng () is a well-known medicinal plant of Oriental medicine that is still in practice today. Until now, a total of 11 Korean ginseng cultivars with unique features to Korean ginseng have been developed based on the pure-line-selection method. Among them, a new cultivar namely G-1 with different agricultural traits related to yield and content of ginsenosides, was developed in 2012.

Methods: The aim of this study was to distinguish the new ginseng cultivar G-1 by identifying the unique single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) at its 45S ribosomal DNA and region than other Korean ginseng cultivars using multiplex amplification-refractory mutation system-polymerase chain reaction (ARMS-PCR).

Results: A SNP at position of 45S ribosomal DNA region between G-1, , and the other Korean ginseng cultivars was identified. By designing modified allele-specific primers based on this site, we could specifically identified G-1 and via multiplex PCR. The unique primer for the SNP yielded an amplicon of size 449 bp in G-1 cultivar and . This study presents an effective method for the genetic identification of the G-1 cultivar and .

Conclusion: The results from our study shows that this SNP-based approach to identify the G-1 cultivar will be a good way to distinguish accurately the G-1 cultivar and from other Korean ginseng cultivars using a SNP at 45S ribosomal DNA region.