Chromosome-level homeology in paleopolyploid soybean (Glycine max) revealed through integration of genetic and chromosome maps

Soybean has 20 chromosome pairs that are derived from at least two rounds of genomewide duplication or polyploidy events although, cytogenetically, soybean behaves like a diploid and has disomic inheritance for most loci. Genetically anchored genomic clones were used as probes for fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) to determine the level of postpolyploid chromosomal rearrangements and to integrate the genetic and physical maps to (1) assign linkage groups to specific chromosomes, (2) assess chromosomal structure, and (3) determine the distribution of recombination along the length of a chromosome. FISH mapping of seven putatively gene-rich BACs from linkage group L (chromosome 19) revealed that most of the genetic map correlates to the highly euchromatic long arm and that there is extensive homeology with another chromosome pair, although colinearity of some loci does appear to be disrupted. Moreover, mapping of BACs containing high-copy sequences revealed sequestration of high-copy repeats to the pericentromeric regions of this chromosome. Taken together, these data present a model of chromosome structure in a highly duplicated but diploidized eukaryote, soybean.