Long-time evolution and highly dynamic satellite DNA in leptodactylid and hylodid frogs.

Background Satellite DNA sequences are the most abundant components of heterochromatin and are repeated in tandem hundreds to thousands of times in the genome. However, the number of repeats of a specific satellite family can vary even between the genomes of related species or populations. The PcP190 satellite DNA family was identified in the genome of the leptodactylid frog Physalaemus cuvieri, which showed to be derived most likely from the 5S rDNA in an ancestral species. In this study, we investigate the presence of the PcP190 satellite DNA in several P. cuvieri populations and in four closely related species at the chromosomal and molecular level. Furthermore, we investigate the occurrence of this satellite DNA in the genomes of P. marmoratus as well as in representative species of the leptodactylid genus Leptodactylus (L. latrans) and the hylodid family (Crossodactylus gaudichaudii), all with the aim of investigating if the PcP190 satellite DNA presents or not a restricted distribution.