Comparative cytogenetics of tree frogs of the Dendropsophus marmoratus (Laurenti, 1768) group: conserved karyotypes and interstitial telomeric sequences

By

Teixeira, Lívia
Seger, Karin
Targueta, Cíntia
Orrico, Victor
Lourenço, Luciana

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2016

Original Publication

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

Volume

10

Series / Issue

Issue: 4

Pages

753-767

Subjects

Anura , Chromosomes , telomeric sequence

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.v10i4.9972

 

Abstract

The diploid number 2n = 30 is a presumed synapomorphy of Dendropsophus Fitzinger, 1843, although a noticeable variation in the number of biarmed/telocentric chromosomes is observed in this genus. Such a variation suggests that several chromosomal rearrangements took place after the evolutionary origin of the hypothetical ancestral 30-chromosome karyotype; however, the inferred rearrangements remain unknown. Distinct numbers of telocentric chromosomes are found in the two most cytogenetically studied species groups of Dendropsophus. In contrast, all three species of the Dendropsophus marmoratus (Laurenti, 1768) group that are already karyotyped presented five pairs of telocentric chromosomes. In this study, we analyzed cytogenetically three additional species of this group to investigate if the number of telocentric chromosomes in this group is not as variable as in other Dendropsophus groups. We described the karyotypes of Dendropsophus seniculus (Cope, 1868), D. soaresi (Caramaschi & Jim, 1983) and D. novaisi (Bokermann, 1968) based on Giemsa staining, C-banding, silver impregnation and in situ hybridization with telomeric probes. Dendropsophus seniculus, D. soaresi and D. novaisi presented five pairs of telocentric chromosomes, as did the remaining species of the group previously karyotyped. Though the species of this group show a high degree of karyotypic similarity, D. soaresi was unique in presenting large blocks of het-ITSs (heterochromatic internal telomeric sequences) in the majority of the centromeres. Although the ITSs have been interpreted as evidence of ancestral chromosomal fusions and inversions, the het-ITSs detected in the karyotype of D. soaresi could not be explained as direct remnants of ancestral chromosomal rearrangements because no evidence of chromosomal changes emerged from the comparison of the karyotypes of all of the species of the D. marmoratus group.