Premium
Isolation and characterization of two satellite DNAs in some Iberian rock lizards (Squamata, Lacertidae)
Author(s) -
Giovannotti Massimo,
Rojo Verónica,
Nisi Cerioni Paola,
GonzálezTizón Ana,
MartínezLage Andrés,
Splendiani Andrea,
Naveira Horacio,
Ruggeri Paolo,
Arribas óscar,
Olmo Ettore,
Caputo Barucchi Vincenzo
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
journal of experimental zoology part b: molecular and developmental evolution
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.823
H-Index - 63
eISSN - 1552-5015
pISSN - 1552-5007
DOI - 10.1002/jez.b.22530
Subject(s) - biology , squamata , centromere , lacertidae , satellite dna , heterochromatin , chromosome , genetics , genome , evolutionary biology , phylogenetic tree , interspersed repeat , zoology , gene , human genome , lizard , sauria
Satellite DNAs represent a large portion of all high eukaryotic genomes. They consist of numerous very similar repeated sequences, tandemly arranged in large clusters up to 100 million base pairs in length, usually located in the heterochromatic parts of chromosomes. The biological significance of satDNAs is still under discussion, but most of their proposed functions are related to heterochromatin and/or centromere formation and function. Because information about the structure of reptilian satDNA is far from exhaustive, we present a molecular and cytogenetic characterization of two satDNA families in four lacertid species. Two families of tandemly repeated DNAs, namely Taq I and Hin dIII satDNAs, have been cloned and sequenced from four species belonging to the genus Iberolacerta . These satDNAs are characterized by a monomer length of 171–188 and 170–172 bp, and by an AT content of 60.5% and 58.1%, respectively. FISH experiments with Taq I satDNA probe produced bright signals in pericentromeric regions of a subset of chromosomes whereas all the centromeres were marked by Hin dIII probe. The results obtained in this study suggest that chromosome location and abundance of satDNAs influence the evolution of these elements, with centromeric families evolving tenfold faster than interstitial/pericentromeric ones. Such different rates render different satellites useful for phylogenetic investigation at different taxonomic ranks. J. Exp. Zool. (Mol. Dev. Evol.) 322B: 13–26, 2014. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.