Representing SSR molecular marker profiles using concepts from Andean khipus

The International Potato Center presently uses a SSR marker-kit to create molecular profiles for potato accessions. We identified a need for a compact graphical representation that allows comparative presentation of molecular diversity and accession characteristics - thereby permitting biologists and collection curators to have a simple means to interpret molecular data.

Inspired by the ancient Andean qipus we devised a graph that standardizes representation while leaving room for updates of the marker kit and the collection of accessions. The molecular khipu permits combining and annotating a set of SSR loci with allele frequency and allele size distribution information. The design is flexible to incorporate updates on genetic diversity information.