Comparative Cytotaxonomy of Two Species of Fish from the Genus Satanoperca Reveals the Presence of a B Chromosome.

The taxonomy of Satanoperca spp. is still unresolved, especially because coloring, one of the main diagnostic characters, is variable among species of this genus. Thus, the aim of this study was to elucidate the relationship between the genome and the organization of the chromosome in two Satanoperca species. Our main goal was to develop a method to better differentiate taxa and understand the evolution of Satanoperca jurupari and Satanoperca lilith karyotypes, which we analyzed with classical and molecular cytogenetics. Both species have the same diploid number (2n) of 48 and location of 5S rDNA sites on pair 5. Nonetheless, the distribution of heterochromatin and 18S rDNA sites followed a species-specific pattern. The interstitial telomeric sites were not highlighted in either species. Regardless, a single B chromosome was identified in some metaphases of S. lilith. These data show that Satanoperca species harbor chromosomal features that can be used to identify the two species of Satanoperca studied here, allowing for the use of cytogenetic markers to make taxonomic inferences within the genus.