Genomic homeology between Pennisetum purpureum and Pennisetum glaucum (Poaceae)

By

Barreto dos Reis, Gabriela
Teixeira Mesquita, Amanda
Torres, Giovana
Fonseca Andrade-Vieira, Larissa
Pereira, Antônio Vander
Davide, Lisete Chamma

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2014

Original Publication

Comparative cytogenetics : international journal of plant & animal cytogenetics, karyosystematics and molecular systematics

Volume

8

Series / Issue

Issue: 3

Pages

31-41

Subjects

Genomic in situ hybridization , Homeology , Pennisetum glaucum , Pennisetum purpureum

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

St. Petersburg, Russia [Published] with technical support of Zoological Institute RAS [2007]-

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/compcytogen.v8i3.7732

 

Abstract

The genus Pennisetum (Richard, 1805) includes two economically important tropical forage plants: Pennisetum purpureum (Schumacher, 1827) (elephant grass), with 2n = 4x = 28 chromosomes and genomes A'A'BB, and Pennisetum glaucum (Linnaeus, 1753) (pearl millet), with 2n = 2x = 14 chromosomes and genomes AA. The genetic proximity between them allows obtaining hybrids (2n = 3x = 21) that yield forage of higher quality in relation to the parents. The study of genomic relationships provides subsidies for the knowledge about phylogenetic relations and evolution, and is useful in breeding programs seeking gene introgression. Concerning elephant grass and pearl millet, the homeology between the genomes A and A', and between these and the genome B, has been reported by conventional cytogenetic techniques. The objective of the present study was to demonstrate the degree of homeology between these genomes by means of genomic in situ hybridization (GISH). The results confirmed the homeology between the genomes A of pearl millet and A'B of elephant grass, and showed that there are differences in the distribution and proportion of homologous regions after hybridization. Discussion regarding the evolutionary origin of P. purpureum and P. glaucum was also included.