Taxonomic and systematic studies of bamboos are traditionally based on floral morphology, but this can lead to difficulties in identification because of the irregular reproductive cycle of the bamboos. To overcome such problems several molecular-marker approaches have been used. In this study, eight species of the woody bamboos belonging to the genus Dendrocalamus were employed. For each species, DNA samples of 20 individual plants from different localities were isolated and then pooled to make eight bulks of DNA. Fifty RAPD primers were used to screen all bulked DNA samples. Only five primers yielded consistent and reproducible RAPD band patterns across all 160 individuals. The amplicons were present among five species of Dendrocalamus, but were absent in the other three species. They were cloned, sequenced and subsequently, five pairs of SCAR primers were designed. All SCAR primers were combined in multiplex PCR reactions to unequivocally discriminate five species of Dendrocalamus.
