Cytogenetic analysis of Astyanax laticeps (Cope, 1894) (Ostariophysi: Characidae) from the laguna dos Patos system

• Main Authors: Renata da Rosa, Marceléia Rubert, Luiz R. Malabarba, Isabel Cristina Martins-Santos, Lucia Giuliano-Caetano
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Sociedade Brasileira de Ictiologia
• Series: Neotropical Ichthyology
• Subjects: Astyanax scabripinnis species complex; rDNA; Homologous transposition
• Online Access: http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1679-62252009000400007&lng=en&tlng=en
• ISSN: 1982-0224

The genus Astyanax is prominent among Characiformes, due to the large number of species found and its wide geographic distribution. In this work, Astyanax laticeps specimens from the laguna dos Patos system were cytogenetically analyzed. A diploid number of 2n = 50 chromosomes distributed into 6m+16sm+16st+12a (FN = 88) was found, without differences between males and females. A few small heterochromatin blocks were observed, besides three more conspicuous C-bands, corresponding to NORs, as confirmed by silver nitrate and CMA3 staining, FISH, and DAPI negative staining. These regions were located in a medium-sized subtelocentric and in a large subtelocentric chromosomal pair, probably because of a deletion of this region in one homologous chromosome, or due to a transposition event between them.