Dataset Information

Cytogenetic and molecular analyses reveal a divergence between Acromyrmex striatus (Roger, 1863) and other congeneric species: taxonomic implications.

ABSTRACT: The leafcutter ants, which consist of Acromyrmex and Atta genera, are restricted to the New World and they are considered the main herbivores in the neotropics. Cytogenetic studies of leafcutter ants are available for five species of Atta and 14 species of Acromyrmex, both including subspecies. These two ant genera have a constant karyotype with a diploid number of 22 and 38 chromosomes, respectively. The most distinct Acromyrmex species from Brazil is A. striatus, which is restricted to the southern states of Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul. Several cytogenetic and phylogenetic studies have been conducted with ants, but the karyotypic characterization and phylogenetic position of this species relative to leafcutter ants remains unknown. In this study, we report a diploid number of 22 chromosomes for A. striatus. The phylogenetic relationship between A. striatus and other leafcutter ants was estimated based on the four nuclear genes. A. striatus shared the same chromosome number as Atta species and the majority of metacentric chromosomes. Nuclear data generated a phylogenetic tree with a well-supported cluster, where A. striatus formed a different clade from other Acromyrmex spp. This combination of cytogenetic and molecular approaches provided interesting insights into the phylogenetic position of A. striatus among the leafcutter ants and the tribe Attini.

SUBMITTER: Cristiano MP

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3603875 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Cytogenetic and molecular analyses reveal a divergence between Acromyrmex striatus (Roger, 1863) and other congeneric species: taxonomic implications.

Cristiano Maykon Passos MP Cardoso Danon Clemes DC Fernandes-Salomão Tânia Maria TM

PloS one 20130320 3

The leafcutter ants, which consist of Acromyrmex and Atta genera, are restricted to the New World and they are considered the main herbivores in the neotropics. Cytogenetic studies of leafcutter ants are available for five species of Atta and 14 species of Acromyrmex, both including subspecies. These two ant genera have a constant karyotype with a diploid number of 22 and 38 chromosomes, respectively. The most distinct Acromyrmex species from Brazil is A. striatus, which is restricted to the sou ...[more]

PMID: 23527267

Similar Datasets

Project description:Cytogenetic data for the genus Acromyrmex Mayr, 1865 are available, to date, for a few species from Brazil and Uruguay, which have uniform chromosome numbers (2n = 38). The recent cytogenetic data of Acromyrmex striatus (Roger, 1863), including its banding patterns, showed a distinct karyotype (2n = 22), similar to earlier studied Atta Fabricius, 1804 species. Karyological data are still scarce for the leafcutter ants and many gaps are still present for a proper understanding of this group. Therefore, this study aimed at increasing cytogenetic knowledge of the genus through the characterization of other six species: Acromyrmex balzani (Emery, 1890), Acromyrmex coronatus Fabricius, 1804, Acromyrmex disciger (Mayr, 1887), Acromyrmex echinatior (Forel, 1899), Acromyrmex niger (Smith, 1858) and Acromyrmex rugosus (Smith, 1858), all of which were collected in Minas Gerais - Brazil, except for Acromyrmex echinatior which was collected in Barro Colorado - Panama. The number and morphology of the chromosomes were studied and the following banding techniques were applied: C-banding, fluorochromes CMA3 and DAPI, as well as the detection of 45S rDNA using FISH technique. All the six species had the same chromosome number observed for already studied species, i.e. 2n = 38. Acromyrmex balzani had a different karyotype compared with other species mainly due to the first metacentric pair. The heterochromatin distribution also showed interspecific variation. Nevertheless, all the studied species had a pair of bands in the short arm of the first subtelocentric pair. The fluorochrome CMA3 visualized bands in the short arm of the first subtelocentric pair for all the six species, while Acromyrmex rugosus and Acromyrmex niger also demonstrated in the other chromosomes. The AT-rich regions with differential staining using DAPI were not observed. 45S ribosomal genes were identified by FISH in the short arm of the first subtelocentric pair in Acromyrmex coronatus, Acromyrmex disciger and Acromyrmex niger. The uniform chromosome number in the genus Acromyrmex (2n = 38) suggests that Acromyrmex striatus (2n = 22) should be transferred to a new genus. Other aspects of the chromosome evolution in ants are also discussed.

Project description:Past climate changes often have influenced the present distribution and intraspecific genetic diversity of organisms. The objective of this study was to investigate the phylogeography and historical demography of populations of Acromyrmex striatus (Roger, 1863), a leaf-cutting ant species restricted to the open plains of South America. Additionally, we modeled the distribution of this species to predict its contemporary and historic habitat. From the partial sequences of the mitochondrial gene cytochrome oxidase I of 128 A. striatus workers from 38 locations we estimated genetic diversity and inferred historical demography, divergence time, and population structure. The potential distribution areas of A. striatus for current and quaternary weather conditions were modeled using the maximum entropy algorithm. We identified a total of 58 haplotypes, divided into five main haplogroups. The analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) revealed that the largest proportion of genetic variation is found among the groups of populations. Paleodistribution models suggest that the potential habitat of A. striatus may have decreased during the Last Interglacial Period (LIG) and expanded during the Last Maximum Glacial (LGM). Overall, the past potential distribution recovered by the model comprises the current potential distribution of the species. The general structuring pattern observed was consistent with isolation by distance, suggesting a balance between gene flow and drift. Analysis of historical demography showed that populations of A. striatus had remained constant throughout its evolutionary history. Although fluctuations in the area of their potential historic habitat occurred during quaternary climate changes, populations of A. striatus are strongly structured geographically. However, explicit barriers to gene flow have not been identified. These findings closely match those in Mycetophylax simplex, another ant species that in some areas occurs in sympatry with A. striatus. Ecophysiological traits of this species and isolation by distance may together have shaped the phylogeographic pattern.

Dataset Information

Cytogenetic and molecular analyses reveal a divergence between Acromyrmex striatus (Roger, 1863) and other congeneric species: taxonomic implications.

Publications

Cytogenetic and molecular analyses reveal a divergence between Acromyrmex striatus (Roger, 1863) and other congeneric species: taxonomic implications.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets