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Cytogenetics, Epigenetics and Karyotype Evolution of Duckweeds

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The Duckweed Genomes

Part of the book series: Compendium of Plant Genomes ((CPG))

Abstract

Duckweed is an interesting model for studying cytogenetics, epigenetics and karyotype evolution. Belonging to the monocotyledonous arum or aroid family Araceae, these aquatic plants present an approximately 12-fold range of different genome sizes, from 158 Mbp (Spirodela sps.) to 1881 Mbp (Wolffia arrhiza) and variable chromosome numbers. In addition to reduced gene repertoires that found in so far all published duckweed genomes of Spirodela, Lemna and Wolffia species, several peculiar genome and epigenome features (e.g. the lowest copy number of genes coding for rRNA, extreme levels of global DNA methylation, and atypical patterns of heterochromatic and euchromatic territories) indicate a unique and interesting history of duckweed genome evolution, organization and adaptation to plants with simplified body architecture and extremely fast growth rate. Together with the high-throughput long-read, long-range information and optical mapping technologies, available cytogenetic resources, including an efficient and robust protocol of multicolour fluorescence in situ hybridization (mcFISH) and mitotic chromosome preparation, and a Spirodela genome-integrated bacterial-artificial-chromosome (BAC) map with ancestral chromosome linkages allow further comprehensive comparative genomic and cytogenetic analysis between duckweed, its close relatives, and other monocotyledonous plants of interest.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Charlotte Ost (University of Halle-Wittenberg) for reading the article and for critical discussions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Biology/Plant Physiology, Martin-Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg, Weinbergweg 10, 06120, Halle, Germany

    Xuan Hieu Cao

  2. Leibniz Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research (IPK), Corrensstrasse 3, 06166, Gatersleben, Germany

    Giang T. H. Vu

Authors
  1. Xuan Hieu Cao
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  2. Giang T. H. Vu
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Correspondence to Xuan Hieu Cao .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Plant Physiology, Institute of Biology, Martin-Luther-University of Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany

    Xuan Hieu Cao

  2. Waksman Institute of Microbiology, Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ, USA

    Paul Fourounjian

  3. School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China

    Wenqin Wang

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Cao, X.H., Vu, G.T.H. (2020). Cytogenetics, Epigenetics and Karyotype Evolution of Duckweeds. In: Cao, X., Fourounjian, P., Wang, W. (eds) The Duckweed Genomes. Compendium of Plant Genomes. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-11045-1_4

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