Wide distribution of related satellite DNA families within the genus <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pimelia</Emphasis> (Tenebrionidae)

Major satellites of species in the genus Pimelia comprise large portions of their genomes and belong to seven major satellite families which all originate from a common ancestral sequence. Here we present the results of comprehensive screening of 26 Pimelia species belonging to three distinct geographic groups (Ibero-Balearic, African and Canary Islands) for the presence of different Pimelia satellite families in their genomes. Dot-blot hybridization experiments suggest that together with one dominant, highly abundant satellite family, other families are also present in genomes of the majority of examined Pimelia species, but as low-copy number repeats. The estimated abundance of these underrepresented repeats is about 4,000 copies per haploid genome. Signals of highly abundant satellite family from P. scabrosa (PSCA) in examined congeneric species, obtained after PCR amplification and Southern hybridization under high stringency conditions, corroborate sequence preservation of low-copy representatives of satellite families. PRINS localized low-copy repeats within the pericentromeric regions of all chromosomes. These results point to the existence of an extensive library of repetitive DNAs that was already present in the genome of the common ancestor of extant Pimelia taxa, and shifts the period of diversification of Pimelia satellites far in the history of this genus.