D K Lamatsch1, C Steinlein, M Schmid, M Schartl. 1. Lehrstuhl für Physiologische Chemie I, Theodor-Boveri-Institut, Würzburg, Germany. lamatsch@biozentrum.uni-wuerzburg.de
Abstract
BACKGROUND: In order to understand the evolutionary significance of single triploids among the mostly diploid Poecilia formosa we have developed a simple, noninvasive technique for DNA content and ploidy determination. METHODS: From dorsal fin clips of 14 different fish species single cell suspensions were obtained by chopping the material in 2.1% citric acid/0.5% Tween20, passing it through a 0. 6-gauge needle and incubating it for 20 min at room temperature (RT) with gentle agitation. After overnight fixation in 70% ethanol, the cells were treated with 1ml 0.5% pepsin/0.1 M HCl for 15 min at RT before adding DAPI to a final volume of 2 ml. The cells were stained for 1-3 h and then analyzed by flow cytometry. RESULTS: We obtained good measurements with CVs ranging from 1.23% to 3.36%. The poeciliid species measured contain from 1.6 to 2.0 pg/nucleus, Oryzias latipes (Medaka) exhibits a nuclear DNA content of 2.2 pg, Danio rerio (zebrafish) 4.6 pg, Tetraodon fluviatilis (freshwater fugu) 0.70 pg. All values except zebrafish are in good agreement with the literature. CONCLUSIONS: The identification of living specimens of different ploidy for breeding experiments, behavioral studies and tissue transplantations is now made possible. With slight modifications the method can be extended to a field technique, providing therefore a useful tool for a variety of researchers. Copyright 2000 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
BACKGROUND: In order to understand the evolutionary significance of single triploids among the mostly diploid Poecilia formosa we have developed a simple, noninvasive technique for DNA content and ploidy determination. METHODS: From dorsal fin clips of 14 different fish species single cell suspensions were obtained by chopping the material in 2.1% citric acid/0.5% Tween20, passing it through a 0. 6-gauge needle and incubating it for 20 min at room temperature (RT) with gentle agitation. After overnight fixation in 70% ethanol, the cells were treated with 1ml 0.5% pepsin/0.1 M HCl for 15 min at RT before adding DAPI to a final volume of 2 ml. The cells were stained for 1-3 h and then analyzed by flow cytometry. RESULTS: We obtained good measurements with CVs ranging from 1.23% to 3.36%. The poeciliid species measured contain from 1.6 to 2.0 pg/nucleus, Oryzias latipes (Medaka) exhibits a nuclear DNA content of 2.2 pg, Danio rerio (zebrafish) 4.6 pg, Tetraodon fluviatilis (freshwater fugu) 0.70 pg. All values except zebrafish are in good agreement with the literature. CONCLUSIONS: The identification of living specimens of different ploidy for breeding experiments, behavioral studies and tissue transplantations is now made possible. With slight modifications the method can be extended to a field technique, providing therefore a useful tool for a variety of researchers. Copyright 2000 Wiley-Liss, Inc.