RESEARCH ARTICLE Effects of traditional management for mescal production on the diversity and genetic structure of Agave potatorum (Asparagaceae) in central Mexico Lizeth I. Fe ´lix-Valdez . Ofelia Vargas-Ponce . Da ´nae Cabrera-Toledo . Alejandro Casas . Ange ´lica Cibrian-Jaramillo . Lino de la Cruz-Larios Received: 27 March 2015 / Accepted: 1 September 2015 Ó Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2015 Abstract Agave potatorum is a wild endemic species of Mexico. Its stems are used for mescal production, which cancels sexual reproduction. Agaves extraction from forests decreases their repro- ductive success and demographic performance. We evaluated patterns of genetic diversity and structure of wild populations under and without extraction in order to identify effects of its use and actions required for conserving genetic variation. This study was con- ducted with seven SSR markers in 12 populations representing the entire distribution area of the species. Standard parameters of genetic diversity, differentia- tion, structure and genetic similarity of populations were calculated and analyzed. The populations studied showed intermediate to high genetic diversity (H e = 0.36–0.64), compared with other Agave species so far studied. The wild category was the most diverse (H T = 0.87), but without significant differences with respect to populations under extraction (H T = 0.72), and two germplasm banks sampled (H T = 0.69). High structure among populations (U PR = 0.38) and inbreeding levels (F IS = 0.26, F IT = 0.55) were iden- tified; a 3 % of genetic diversity being distributed among management status where germplasm banks represent a genetic pool with incipient divergence from the other categories. Bayesian analysis indicated two genetic groups. Our study suggests slight effects of management on genetic diversity of A. potatorum, apparently related to alterations of reproductive biol- ogy and pollination patterns. Keywords Endemic plant Á Germplasm banks Á Incipient domestication Á Plant extraction Á Population genetics Á Tehuaca ´n-Cuicatla ´n Valley Introduction Agave L. (Asparagaceae) is a conspicuous and repre- sentative genus of Mexican landscapes. It is endemic of the Americas and includes about 200 species, nearly 75 % of them distributed only in Mexico, a territory considered as the main center of origin and diversi- fication of the genus (Garcı ´a-Mendoza 2002). Mexico is also the main center of domestication of agaves (Alvarez-de Zayas 1989), and their use has significant L. I. Fe ´lix-Valdez Á O. Vargas-Ponce Á D. Cabrera-Toledo (&) Á L. de la Cruz-Larios Centro Universitario de Ciencias Biolo ´gicas y Agropecuarias, Universidad de Guadalajara, Camino Ramo ´n Padilla Sa ´nchez #2100, Las Agujas, A.P. 45510 Nextipac, Jalisco, Mexico e-mail: danaetoledo@gmail.com A. Casas Instituto de Investigaciones en Ecosistemas y Sustentabilidad (IIES), Universidad Nacional Auto ´noma de Me ´xico, Campus Morelia, 58190 Michoaca ´n, Mexico A. Cibrian-Jaramillo Laboratorio Nacional de Geno ´mica para la Biodiversidad, Centro de Investigacio ´n y de Estudios Avanzados del Instituto Polite ´cnico Nacional, 36821 Guanajuato, Mexico 123 Genet Resour Crop Evol DOI 10.1007/s10722-015-0315-6