%O The authors gratefully acknowledge the support of the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) project CS2/94/43, and the collaboration received through the AusAID-funded Taro Genetic Resources project. Additonally, the technical support provided by Dr. Giovanni Cordeiro and Dr. Tina Maguire is gratefully acknowledged. %A E S Mace %A I D Godwin %I National Research Council Canada %V 45 %L icrisat1542 %J Genome %N 5 %P 823-832 %D 2002 %X Microsatellite-containing sequences were isolated from enriched genomic libraries of taro (Colocasia esculenta (L.) Schott). The sequencing of 269 clones yielded 77 inserts containing repeat motifs. The majority of these (81.7%) were dinucleotide or trinucleotide repeats. The GT/CA repeat motif was the most common, accounting for 42% of all repeat types. From a total of 43 primer pairs designed, 41 produced markers within the expected size range. Sixteen (39%) were polymorphic when screened against a restricted set of taro genotypes from Southeast Asia and Oceania, with an average of 3.2 alleles detected on each locus. These markers represent a useful resource for taro germplasm management, genome mapping, and marker-assisted selection. %T Development and characterization of polymorphic microsatellite markers in taro (Colocasia esculenta)