Chloroplast DNA content increases with nuclear ploidy in Chlamydomonas

Penstemon is the largest genus in North America with more than 270 reported species. However, little is known about its genome size. This information may be useful in developing hybrids for landscape use and for gaining insight into its current taxonomy. Using flow cytometry, we estimated the genome size of approximately 40% of the genus (115 accessions from 105 different species). Genome sizes for both reported and probable diploids range from P. dissectus 2C = 0.94 pg (1C = 462 Mbp) to P. pachyphyllus var. mucronatus 2C = 1.88 pg (1C = 919 Mbp), and the polyploids range from P. attenuatus var. attenuatus 2C = 2.35 pg (1C = 1148 Mbp) to P. digitalis 2C = 6.45 pg (1C = 3152 Mbp). Chromosome counts were done for ten previously published and four previously unreported Penstemon species (P. dissectus, P. navajoa , P. caespitosus var. desertipicti, and P. ramaleyi ). These counts were compiled with all previously published chromosome data and compared with the flow cytometry results. Ploidy within this study ranged from diploid to dodecaploid. These data were compared and contrasted with the current taxonomy of Penstemon and previously published internal transcribed spacer and chloroplast DNA phylogenetic work. Based on genome size and previous studies, reassigning P. montanus to the subgenus Penstemon and P. personatus to the subgenus Dasanthera, would better reflect the phylogeny of the genus. Furthermore, our data concur with previous studies suggesting that the subgenus Habroanthus be included in the subgenus Penstemon. The DNA content of subgenus Penstemon exhibits high plasticity and spans a sixfold increase from the smallest to the largest genome ( P. linarioides subsp. sileri and P. digitalis, respectively). Our study found flow cytometry to be useful in species identification and verification.

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Evidence that the amount of chloroplast DNA exceeds that of nuclear DNA in mature leaves.

The Journal of Cell Biology ◽

10.1083/jcb.79.3.631 ◽

1978 ◽

Vol 79 (3) ◽

pp. 631-636 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

C A Jope ◽

A Hirai ◽

S G Wildman

Keyword(s):

Fluorescence Microscopy ◽

Chloroplast Dna ◽

Dna Content ◽

Nuclear Dna ◽

Colorimetric Assay ◽

Simultaneous Equations ◽

Absolute Amount ◽

Mature Leaves ◽

Intact Chloroplasts ◽

Total Dna

Cell-free homogenates containing intact chloroplasts and nuclei were allowed to settle for up to 1 h before the top 2 ml of the 5-ml homogenate was withdrawn. Whereas less than 18% of the chloroplasts moved from the top to the bottom portions, the ratio of nuclei to chloroplasts in the top portion changed from approximately 1/200 to 1/900. The total numbers of chloroplasts and nuclei were counted in the homogenate before settling and in the top 2 ml and bottom 3 m1 after settling. The total DNA content of the homogenate and the top and bottom portions after settling was determined by the diphenylamine colorimetric assay. By simultaneous equations, the absolute amount of DNA in chloroplasts and nuclei was determined. The results are consistent with previous observations of chloroplast DNA by fluorescence microscopy which indicated that the amount of chloroplast DNA per chloroplast is a function of chloroplast size. In addition, the results show that the amount of chloroplast DNA per average chloroplast in large leaves is 0.14 times 10(-12) g, a magnitude higher than previous reports in the literature, and that large leaves contain about twice as much chloroplast DNA as nuclear DNA.

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Changes in size, DNA content, and nuclear ploidy of rat liver produced by the environmental microflora

Virchows Archiv B Cell Pathology ◽

10.1007/bf02890327 ◽

1976 ◽

Vol 20 (1) ◽

Author(s):

R. Schulte Hermann ◽

F. Deerberg ◽

H. Landgraf

Keyword(s):

Rat Liver ◽

Dna Content ◽

Nuclear Ploidy

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Changes in organelle and DNA Quality, Quantity, and distribution in the wood of Cryptomeria Japonica over long-term storage

IAWA Journal ◽

10.1163/22941932-90000056 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 32 (2) ◽

pp. 263-272 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Hisashi Abe ◽

Ugai Watanabe ◽

Kazumasa Yoshida ◽

Katsushi Kuroda ◽

Chunhua Zhang

Keyword(s):

Chloroplast Dna ◽

Dna Content ◽

Cryptomeria Japonica ◽

Limit Of Detection ◽

Wood Products ◽

Cell Organelles ◽

Long Term Storage ◽

Ray Parenchyma ◽

Ray Cells

Changes in the quantity and quality of DNA during storage (0, 1, 3, 5, 11, 15, 23, 27, 40, 44, 75 years) were investigated for the wood of Cryptomeria japonica. Fresh sapwood yielded more DNA than fresh heartwood. The amount of DNA extracted from wood samples stored for 1 year or more after cutting was below the limit of detection by measurement with a UV spectrophotometer. A chloroplast DNA region with a length of 527 bp was amplified by the polymerase chain reaction from the DNA extracted from sapwood stored for 0, 1, 3, 5, 11, 15 and 23 years, and from heartwood stored for 0, 3, 11, 15 and 23 years. A shorter length of chloroplast DNA with a length of 82 bp was amplified for all of the wood samples used in this study. Using fluorescence microscopy, we observed changes in the abundance of cell organelles containing DNA such as nuclei and amyloplasts during storage. Microscopy showed that the DNA content of latewood ray parenchyma was greater than the DNA content of earlywood ray parenchyma in the sapwood, and amyloplasts were present in ray cells in the heartwood of the stored wood. Our results suggest that optimizing DNA extraction protocols for wood stored for long periods will improve the utility DNA identification of wood products.

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