Analysis and location of a rice BAG clone containing telomeric DNA sequences

BAC2, a rice BAC clone containing (TTTAGGG)_n homologous sequences, was analyzed by Southern hybridization and DNA sequencing of its subclones. It was disclosed that there were many tandem repeated satellite DNA sequences, called TA352, as well as simple tandem repeats consisting of TTTAGGG or its variant within the BAC2 insert. A 0. 8 kb (TTTAGGG)_n-containing fragment in BAC2 was mapped in the telomere regions of at least 5 pairs of rice chromosomes by using fluorescencein situ hybridization (FISH). By RFLP analysis of low copy sequences the BAC2 clone was localized in one terminal region of chromosome 6. All the results strongly suggest that the telomeric DNA sequences of rice are TTTAGGG or its variant, and the linked satellite DNA TA352 sequences belong to telomere-associated sequences.