Molecular characterization of two species-specific tandemly repeated DNAs from entomopathogenic nematodes Steinernema and Heterorhabditis (Nematoda:Rhabditida)

Holocentric chromosomes: convergent evolution, meiotic adaptations, and genomic analysis

In most eukaryotes, the kinetochore protein complex assembles at a single locus termed the centromere to attach chromosomes to spindle microtubules. Holocentric chromosomes have the unusual property of attaching to spindle microtubules along their entire length. Our mechanistic understanding of holocentric chromosome function is derived largely from studies in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, but holocentric chromosomes are found over a broad range of animal and plant species. In this review, we describe how holocentricity may be identified through cytological and molecular methods. By surveying the diversity of organisms with holocentric chromosomes, we estimate that the trait has arisen at least 13 independent times (four times in plants and at least nine times in animals). Holocentric chromosomes have inherent problems in meiosis because bivalents can attach to spindles in a random fashion. Interestingly, there are several solutions that have evolved to allow accurate meiotic segregation of holocentric chromosomes. Lastly, we describe how extensive genome sequencing and experiments in nonmodel organisms may allow holocentric chromosomes to shed light on general principles of chromosome segregation.

Differential diagnosis of Taenia saginata and Taenia solium infections: from DNA probes to polymerase chain reaction

The objective of this work was the rapid and easy differential diagnosis of Taenia saginata and T. solium. First, a T. saginata size-selected genomic deoxyribonucleic acid (gDNA) library was constructed in the vector lambda gt10 using the 2-4 kb fraction from the parasite DNA digested with EcoR1, under 'star' conditions. After differential screening of the library and hybridization analysis with DNA from T. saginata, T. solium, T. taeniaeformis, T. crassiceps, and Echinococcus granulosus (bovine, porcine, and human), 2 recombinant phages were selected. They were designated HDP1 and HDP2. HDP1 reacted specifically with T. saginata DNA, and HDP2 recognized DNA from both T. saginata and T. solium. The 2 DNA probes were then sequenced and further characterized. HDP1 was a repetitive sequence with a 53 bp monomeric unit repeated 24 times in direct tandem along the 1272 bp fragment, while the 3954 bp HDP2 was not a repetitive sequence. Using the sequencing data, oligonucleotides were designed and used in a polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The 2 selected oligonucleotides from probe HDP1 (PTs4F1 and PTs4R1) specifically amplified gDNA from T. saginata, but not T. solium or other related cestodes, with a sensitivity of < 10 pg of T. saginata gDNA, about the quantity of DNA in one taeniid egg. The 3 oligonucleotides selected from the HDP2 sequence (PTs7S35F1, PTs7S35F2, and PTs7S35R1) allowed the differential amplification of gDNA from T. saginata, T. solium and E. granulosus in a multiplex PCR, again with a sensitivity of < 10 pg. These diagnostic tools have immediate application in the differential diagnosis of T. solium and T. saginata in humans and in the diagnosis of dubious cysts in the slaughterhouse. We also hope to apply them to epidemiological surveys of, for example, soil and water in endemic areas.

Cloning and characterization of an extremely conserved satellite DNA family from the root-knot nematode Meloidogyne arenaria

A new satellite DNA family, named pMaE, has been cloned from the genome of the phytoparasitic nematode, Meloidogyne arenaria (Nematoda: Tylenchida). It is represented as tandemly repeated sequences with a monomeric unit of 172 bp. The monomers are present at approximately 15700 copies per haploid genome, and represent about 5.3% of the total genomic DNA. Twenty-seven independent monomers have been cloned and sequenced. The deduced consensus sequence is 70.9% A + T rich, with frequent stretches of A and (or) T. Several direct or inverted sub-repeats are present in the sequence, which may allow the formation of a dyad structure, suggesting some potential role of this repetitive sequence in heterochromatin condensation. The monomers are very homogeneous in sequence, showing on average 1.8% divergence from their consensus sequence. Moreover, Southern blot experiments and sequence analysis of homologous monomers from the genome of geographically distinct M. arenaria populations have shown that this satellite DNA is uniformly distributed and highly conserved within the species. Therefore, it is hypothesized that this unusually low level of variability, either within the genome of a given population or between populations, could be achieved as the result of some highly effective homogenization mechanism acting upon the nematode genome.

Differential diagnosis of Taenia saginata and Taenia solium infection by PCR

We have designed species-specific oligonucleotides which permit the differential detection of two species of cestodes, Taenia saginata and Taenia solium. The oligonucleotides contain sequences established for two previously reported, noncoding DNA fragments cloned from a genomic library of T. saginata. The first, which is T. saginata specific (fragment HDP1), is a repetitive sequence with a 53-bp monomeric unit repeated 24 times in direct tandem along the 1, 272-bp fragment. From this sequence the two oligonucleotides that were selected (oligonucleotides PTs4F1 and PTs4R1) specifically amplified genomic DNA (gDNA) from T. saginata but not T. solium or other related cestodes and had a sensitivity down to 10 pg of T. saginata gDNA. The second DNA fragment (fragment HDP2; 3,954 bp) hybridized to both T. saginata and T. solium DNAs and was not a repetitive sequence. Three oligonucleotides (oligonucleotides PTs7S35F1, PTs7S35F2, and PTs7S35R1) designed from the sequence of HDP2 allowed the differential amplification of gDNAs from T. saginata, T. solium, and Echinococcus granulosus in a multiplex PCR, which exhibits a sensitivity of 10 pg.

A species-specific satellite DNA from the entomopathogenic nematode Heterorhabditis indicus

An AluI satellite DNA family has been cloned from the entomopathogenic nematode Heterorhabditis indicus. This repeated sequence appears to be an unusually abundant satellite DNA, since it constitutes about 45% of the H. indicus genome. The consensus sequence is 174 nucleotides long and has an A + T content of 56%, with the presence of direct and inverted repeat clusters. DNA sequence data reveal that monomers are quite homogeneous. Such homogeneity suggests that some mechanism is acting to maintain the homogeneity of this satellite DNA, despite its abundance, or that this repeated sequence could have appeared recently in the genome of H. indicus. Hybridization analysis of genomic DNAs from different Heterorhabditis species shows that this satellite DNA sequence is specific to the H. indicus genome. Considering the species specificity and the high copy number of this AluI satellite DNA sequence, it could provide a rapid and powerful tool for identifying H. indicus strains.

Satellite DNA sequences as taxonomic markers in nematodes of agronomic interest

The success of alternative crop protection practices against plant-parasitic nematodes using host resistance genes depends fundamentally upon identification of the species and pathotypes effectively controlled by these genes. In the same way, biological control of insects by entomopathogenic nematodes will work only if the nematode strains used are indeed active against the pests to be eliminated. For these applications, the accurate interspecific and/or intraspecific identification of nematodes is thus of outstanding importance. Here, Eric Grenier, Philippe Castagnone-Sereno and Pierre Abad discuss the recent use of satellite DNA sequences in nematode taxonomic diagnostics.