Next generation sequencing and FISH reveal uneven and nonrandom microsatellite distribution in two grasshopper genomes.
Simple sequence repeats (SSRs), also known as microsatellites, are one of the prominent DNA sequences shaping the repeated fraction of eukaryotic genomes. In spite of their profuse use as molecular markers for a variety of genetic and evolutionary studies, their genomic location, distribution, and function are not yet well understood. Here we report the first thorough joint analysis of microsatellite motifs at both genomic and chromosomal levels in animal species, by a combination of 454 sequencing and fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) techniques performed on two grasshopper species. The in silico analysis of the 454 reads suggested that microsatellite expansion is not driving size increase of these genomes, as SSR abundance was higher in the species showing the smallest genome. However, the two species showed the same uneven and nonrandom location of SSRs, with clear predominance of dinucleotide motifs and association with several types of repetitive elements, mostly histone gene spacers, ribosomal DNA intergenic spacers (IGS), and transposable elements (TEs). The FISH analysis showed a dispersed chromosome distribution of microsatellite motifs in euchromatic regions, in coincidence with chromosome location patterns previously observed for many mobile elements in these species. However, some SSR motifs were clustered, especially those located in the histone gene cluster.
Departamento de Genética Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Granada, 18071, Granada, Spain.
Francisco J
FJ
Ruiz-Ruano
Ángeles
Á
Cuadrado
Eugenia E
EE
Montiel
Juan Pedro M
JP
Camacho
María Dolores
MD
López-León
D000818:Animals; D002874:Chromosome Mapping; D004251:DNA Transposable Elements; D021901:DNA, Intergenic / Q000235:genetics; D004275:DNA, Ribosomal / Q000235:genetics; D005260:Female; D049750:Genome, Insect; D006110:Grasshoppers / Q000235:genetics*; D059014:High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing; D006657:Histones / Q000235:genetics; D017404:In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence; D008297:Male; D018895:Microsatellite Repeats / Q000235:genetics*; D009707:Nucleosomes / Q000235:genetics; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA
D004251:DNA Transposable Elements; D021901:DNA, Intergenic; D004275:DNA, Ribosomal; D006657:Histones; D009707:Nucleosomes