Analysis of genetic relations and evaluation of medicinal value among Hedera plants in China by sequence related amplified polymorphism markers and high performance liquid chromatography detection

• We collected 21 Hedera varieties commonly cultivated in China.
• We clustered 21 Hedera varieties into 3 groups by SRAP molecular markers.
• We detected hederacoside C by HPLC in order to evaluate the medicinal value.
• There was some connection between hederacoside C contents and genetic relationship.

Hedera plants are ornamental vines which are regarded as traditional medicinal plants. These plants are widely cultivated worldwide; moreover, new species and varieties have been discovered. For the first time, molecular markers based on sequence-related amplified polymorphism (SRAP) were used in this study to classify species and to analyse the genetic relationship of 21 Hedera plant varieties which are commonly cultivated in China. We also employed high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) to evaluate the medicinal value of these plants by measuring their hederacoside C contents. Results of SRAP–PCR and cluster analyses show that the SRAP molecular markers can successfully be applied in Hedera plants and are available. In addition, HPLC detection results indicate that the Chinese wild species in group I contain less than 30 mg/g hederacoside C and do not comply with the European Pharmacopoeia standards. By contrast, groups II and III exhibit high medicinal value and accord with these standards.