title: Karyotypic Evolution in Malagasy Flying Foxes (Pteropodidae, Chiroptera) and Their Hipposiderid Relatives as Determined by Comparative Chromosome Painting.
abstract: Pteropodidae and Hipposideridae are 2 of the 9 chiropteran families that occur on Madagascar. Despite major advancements in the systematic study of the island's bat fauna, few karyotypic data exist for endemic species. We utilized G- and C-banding in combination with chromosome painting with Myotismyotis probes to establish a genome-wide homology among Malagasy species belonging to the families Pteropodidae (Pteropus rufus 2n = 38; Rousettus madagascariensis, 2n = 36), Hipposideridae (Hipposideros commersoni s.s., 2n = 52), and a single South African representative of the Rhinolophidae (Rhinolophus clivosus, 2n = 58). Painting probes of M. myotis detected 26, 28, 28, and 29 regions of homology in R. madagascariensis, P. rufus, H. commersoni s.s, and R. clivosus, respectively. Translocations, pericentric inversions, and heterochromatin additions were responsible for karyotypic differences amongst the Malagasy pteropodids. Comparative chromosome painting revealed a novel pericentric inversion on P. rufus chromosome 4. Chromosomal characters suggest a close evolutionary relationship between Rousettus and Pteropus. H. commersoni s.s. shared several chromosomal characters with extralimital congeners but did not exhibit 2 chromosomal synapomorphies proposed for Hipposideridae. This study provides further insight into the ancestral karyotypes of pteropodid and hipposiderid bats and corroborates certain molecular phylogenetic hypotheses.
authors.affiliation: Durban Natural Science Museum, Durban, South Africa.
authors.forename: Leigh R
authors.initials: LR
authors.lastname: Richards
authors.forename: Ramugondo V
authors.initials: RV
authors.lastname: Rambau
authors.forename: Steven M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Goodman
authors.forename: Peter J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Taylor
authors.forename: M Corrie
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Schoeman
authors.forename: Fengtang
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Jennifer M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Lamb
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002685:Chiroptera / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics*; D002871:Chromosome Banding; D007446:Chromosome Inversion; D020223:Chromosome Painting; D033481:Chromosomes, Mammalian / Q000235:genetics; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D006570:Heterochromatin; D059785:Karyotype; D008270:Madagascar; D010802:Phylogeny; D014178:Translocation, Genetic
chemical_list: D006570:Heterochromatin