Comparative chromosome painting in Brassicaceae for identification of chromosome homeology and elucidation of karyotype evolution

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Martin Lysak
• Subject Area: Plant Genetics and Genomics
• Term: from 2003 to 2004
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 5407334

Painting of entire Arabidopsis thaliana chromosomes by FISH with chromosomespecific BAC contigs and comparative chromosome painting (CCP) for identification of homeologous chromosomes in meiotic stages (pachytene) of related Brassicaceae species have been established successfully. Based on these prerequisites it is intended to apply CCP to ~50 taxa of eight tribes of the mustard family including the closest relatives of the Arabidopsis genus. The aim is to reveal chromosomes/chromosome regions homeologous to the five A. thaliana chromosomes and chromosome rearrangements that occurred during evolution and contributed to the variation of the basic chromosome numbers (X=4 to 10) among the selected species. This first application of CCP to a plant family will be supplemented by chromosome counts (new or confirmative), genome size estimation by flow-cytometry, and identification of rDNA bearing chromosomes by FISH. The data on chromosome homeology are expected to elucidate karyotype evolution and phylogenetic relationships within the Brassicaceae in comparison with recent molecular phylogenetic data.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants