Evolution of satDNAs on holocentric chromosomes: insights from hemipteran insects of the genus Mahanarva.

Satellite DNAs (satDNAs) constitute one of the main components of eukaryote genomes and are involved in chromosomal organization and diversification. Although largely studied, little information was gathered about their evolution on holocentric species, i.e.

U1 snDNA chromosomal mapping in ten spittlebug species (Cercopidade, Auchenorrhyncha, Hemiptera).

Spittlebugs, which belong to the family Cercopidae (Auchenorrhyncha, Hemiptera), form a large group of xylem-feeding insects that are best known for causing damage to plantations and pasture grasses. The holocentric chromosomes of these insects remain poorly studied in regards to the organization of different classes of repetitive DNA. To improve chromosomal maps based on repetitive DNAs and to better understand the chromosomal organization and evolutionary dynamics of multigene families in spittlebugs, we physically mapped the U1 snRNA gene with fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) in 10 species of Cercopidae belonging to three different genera.

Karyotypes and Repetitive DNA Evolution in Six Species of the Genus Mahanarva (Auchenorrhyncha: Cercopidae).

Insects of the Cercopidae family are widely distributed and comprise 59 genera and 431 species in the New World. They are xylemophagous, causing losses in agricultural and pasture grasses, and are considered as emerging pests. Chromosomally, these insects have been studied by standard techniques, revealing variable diploid numbers and primarily X0 sex chromosome systems (males).

Organization of some repetitive DNAs and B chromosomes in the grasshopper Eumastusia koebelei koebelei (Rehn, 1909) (Orthoptera, Acrididae, Leptysminae).

B chromosomes occur in approximately 15% of eukaryotes and are usually heterochromatic and rich in repetitive DNAs. Here we describe characteristics of a B chromosome in the grasshopper Eumastusia koebelei koebelei (Rehn, 1909) through classical cytogenetic methods and mapping of some repetitive DNAs, including multigene families, telomeric repeats and a DNA fraction enriched with repetitive DNAs obtained from DOP-PCR. Eumastusia koebelei koebelei presented 2n=23, X0 and, in one individual, two copies of the same variant of a B chromosome were noticed, which are associated during meiosis.

Chromosome mapping of ribosomal genes and histone H4 in the genus Radacridium (Romaleidae).

In this study, two species of Romaleidae grasshoppers, Radacridium mariajoseae and R.nordestinum, were analyzed after CMA3/DA/DAPI sequential staining and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) to determine the location of the 18S and 5S rDNA and histone H4 genes. Both species presented karyotypes composed of 2n = 23, X0 with exclusively acrocentric chromosomes.