Comparing Super-Resolution Microscopy Techniques to Analyze Chromosomes.

The importance of fluorescence light microscopy for understanding cellular and sub-cellular structures and functions is undeniable. However, the resolution is limited by light diffraction (~200-250 nm laterally, ~500-700 nm axially). Meanwhile, super-resolution microscopy, such as structured illumination microscopy (SIM), is being applied more and more to overcome this restriction.

Chromosome Painting in Cultivated Bananas and Their Wild Relatives ( spp.) Reveals Differences in Chromosome Structure.

Edible banana cultivars are diploid, triploid, or tetraploid hybrids, which originated by natural cross hybridization between subspecies of diploid , or between and diploid . The participation of two other wild diploid species and was also indicated by molecular studies. The fusion of gametes with structurally different chromosome sets may give rise to progenies with structural chromosome heterozygosity and reduced fertility due to aberrant chromosome pairing and unbalanced chromosome segregation.

DNA replication and chromosome positioning throughout the interphase in three-dimensional space of plant nuclei.

Despite much recent progress, our understanding of the principles of plant genome organization and its dynamics in three-dimensional space of interphase nuclei remains surprisingly limited. Notably, it is not clear how these processes could be affected by the size of a plant's nuclear genome. In this study, DNA replication timing and interphase chromosome positioning were analyzed in seven Poaceae species that differ in their genome size.

Comparative analyses of DNA repeats and identification of a novel Fesreba centromeric element in fescues and ryegrasses.

Background: Cultivated grasses are an important source of food for domestic animals worldwide. Increased knowledge of their genomes can speed up the development of new cultivars with better quality and greater resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses. The most widely grown grasses are tetraploid ryegrass species (Lolium) and diploid and hexaploid fescue species (Festuca).

CRISPR/Cas9-Based RGEN-ISL Allows the Simultaneous and Specific Visualization of Proteins, DNA Repeats, and Sites of DNA Replication.

Visualizing the spatiotemporal organization of the genome will improve our understanding of how chromatin structure and function are intertwined. Here, we describe a further development of the CRISPR/Cas9-based RNA-guided endonuclease-in situ labeling (RGEN-ISL) method. RGEN-ISL allowed the differentiation between vertebrate-type (TTAGGG)n and Arabidopsis-type (TTTAGGG)n telomere repeats.

Molecular and Cytogenetic Study of East African Highland Banana.

East African highland bananas (EAHBs) are staple food crop in Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi, and other countries in the African Great Lakes region. Even though several morphologically different types exist, all EAHBs are triploid and display minimal genetic variation. To provide more insights into the genetic variation within EAHBs, genotyping using simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers, molecular analysis of ITS1-5.