Bupleurum falcatum L. in northern Kyushu and Yamaguchi Prefecture are genetically distinguished from other populations, based on DNA fingerprints.

Total DNA was extracted from leaves of Bupleurum falcatum originating from eight different habitats in Japan and hybridized with digoxigenin-labeled rice ribosomal DNA after digestion with various restriction enzymes. The resulting DNA fingerprints allowed us to distinguish the geographic populations of B. falcatum when the DNA was digested with Dra I, Kpn I or Taq I. A dendrogram based on the RFLP profiles indicated that B. falcatum distributing in northern Kyushu and Yamaguchi Prefecture is classified into a taxon or subtaxon that can be differentiated from the plants grown in other regions.