Development of EST-SSR molecular markers related to metabolic pathways in Kelussia odoratissima Mozaff

Kelussia odoratissima Mozaff, is one of the most important medicinal plants in Iran and is facing the risk of extinction. Keluss is not only used as a valuable herb in its raw form but also possesses numerous therapeutic properties in traditional medicine and modern herbal drug combinations from a pharmacological perspective. However, the lack of information on its genetic diversity and the mechanisms of important metabolite production in this plant pose challenges for genetic research on this species. In the present study, with the aim of developing high-throughput EST-SSR markers, the assembly process of short reads obtained through next generation sequencing technology was employed. A total of 7575 microsatellite loci were identified in 6388 unigenes. Among these markers, dinucleotide motifs followed by trinucleotide and mononucleotide motifs exhibited the highest abundance. Blast analysis of the sequences containing microsatellites revealed that 79.74% of the transcripts had at least one record in the non-redundant protein database. Further investigations involving transcription factors and functional annotations indicated that most of the microsatellite-containing unigenes are involved in metabolic pathways and the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites. The results showed that these markers assist in the analysis of genetic diversity and metabolic pathways of this plant, information that can be crucially important for the conservation and sustainable utilization of this valuable plant.