Ribosomal RNA Internal Transcribed Regions Identify Possible Misidentification or Mislabeling among (Clover) Specimens from Germplasm Collections

Accurate identification and labeling of plant germplasm is essential for creating new hybrids with enhanced agronomic characteristics and for basic genetic and evolutionary studies. Expert collectors and seed banks do their best to attain high levels of accuracy and reliability, but errors are inevitable. During the course of a study of clover ( Trifolium ) transposable elements, we obtained DNA sequence results that led us to question the species designation of some accessions. By sequencing the internal transcribed spacer regions of the nuclear ribosomal RNA gene, we show that 4 of the 13 specimens we obtained appear to have been mislabeled or misidentified.