Browsing by Author "Severson, David W."

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    Correction: Mitotic-Chromosome-Based Physical Mapping of the Culex quinquefasciatus Genome.
    Naumenko, Anastasia N.; Timoshevskiy, Vladimir A.; Kinney, Nicholas A.; Kokhanenko, Alina A.; deBruyn, Becky S.; Lovin, Diane D.; Stegniy, Vladimir N.; Severson, David W.; Sharakhov, Igor V.; Sharakhova, Maria V. (2015)
    Correction
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    Imaginal Discs - A New Source of Chromosomes for Genome Mapping of the Yellow Fever Mosquito Aedes aegypti
    Sharakhova, Maria V.; Timoshevskiy, Vladimir A.; Yang, Fan; Demin, Sergei Iu.; Severson, David W.; Sharakhov, Igor V. (PLOS, 2011-10-01)
    Background: The mosquito Aedes aegypti is the primary global vector for dengue and yellow fever viruses. Sequencing of the Ae. aegypti genome has stimulated research in vector biology and insect genomics. However, the current genome assembly is highly fragmented with only ,31% of the genome being assigned to chromosomes. A lack of a reliable source of chromosomes for physical mapping has been a major impediment to improving the genome assembly of Ae. aegypti. Methodology/Principal Findings: In this study we demonstrate the utility of mitotic chromosomes from imaginal discs of 4th instar larva for cytogenetic studies of Ae. aegypti. High numbers of mitotic divisions on each slide preparation, large sizes, and reproducible banding patterns of the individual chromosomes simplify cytogenetic procedures. Based on the banding structure of the chromosomes, we have developed idiograms for each of the three Ae. aegypti chromosomes and placed 10 BAC clones and a 18S rDNA probe to precise chromosomal positions. Conclusion: The study identified imaginal discs of 4th instar larva as a superior source of mitotic chromosomes for Ae. aegypti. The proposed approach allows precise mapping of DNA probes to the chromosomal positions and can be utilized for obtaining a high-quality genome assembly of the yellow fever mosquito.
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    An Integrated Linkage, Chromosome, and Genome Map for the Yellow Fever Mosquito Aedes aegypti
    Timoshevskiy, Vladimir A.; Severson, David W.; deBruyn, Becky S.; Black, William C.; Sharakhov, Igor V.; Sharakhova, Maria V. (PLOS, 2013-02-01)
    Background: Aedes aegypti, the yellow fever mosquito, is an efficient vector of arboviruses and a convenient model system for laboratory research. Extensive linkage mapping of morphological and molecular markers localized a number of quantitative trait loci (QTLs) related to the mosquito’s ability to transmit various pathogens. However, linking the QTLs to Ae. aegypti chromosomes and genomic sequences has been challenging because of the poor quality of polytene chromosomes and the highly fragmented genome assembly for this species. Methodology/Principal Findings: Based on the approach developed in our previous study, we constructed idiograms for mitotic chromosomes of Ae. aegypti based on their banding patterns at early metaphase. These idiograms represent the first cytogenetic map developed for mitotic chromosomes of Ae. aegypti. One hundred bacterial artificial chromosome clones carrying major genetic markers were hybridized to the chromosomes using fluorescent in situ hybridization. As a result, QTLs related to the transmission of the filarioid nematode Brugia malayi, the avian malaria parasite Plasmodium gallinaceum, and the dengue virus, as well as sex determination locus and 183 Mbp of genomic sequences were anchored to the exact positions on Ae. aegypti chromosomes. A linear regression analysis demonstrated a good correlation between positions of the markers on the physical and linkage maps. As a result of the recombination rate variation along the chromosomes, 12 QTLs on the linkage map were combined into five major clusters of QTLs on the chromosome map. Conclusion: This study developed an integrated linkage, chromosome, and genome map—iMap—for the yellow fever mosquito. Our discovery of the localization of multiple QTLs in a few major chromosome clusters suggests a possibility that the transmission of various pathogens is controlled by the same genomic loci. Thus, the iMap will facilitate the identification of genomic determinants of traits responsible for susceptibility or refractoriness of the mosquito to diverse pathogens.
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    Mitotic-Chromosome-Based Physical Mapping of the Culex quinquefasciatus Genome
    Naumenko, Anastasia N.; Timoshevskiy, Vladimir A.; Kinney, Nicholas A.; Kokhanenko, Alina A.; deBruyn, Becky S.; Lovin, Diane D.; Stegniy, Vladimir N.; Severson, David W.; Sharakhov, Igor V.; Sharakhova, Maria V. (PLOS, 2015-03-13)
    The genome assembly of southern house mosquito Cx. quinquefasciatus is represented by a high number of supercontigs with no order or orientation on the chromosomes. Although cytogenetic maps for the polytene chromosomes of this mosquito have been developed, their utilization for the genome mapping remains difficult because of the low number of high quality spreads in chromosome preparations. Therefore, a simple and robust mitotic-chromosome-based approach for the genome mapping of Cx. quinquefasciatus still needs to be developed. In this study, we performed physical mapping of 37 genomic supercontigs using fluorescent in situ hybridization on mitotic chromosomes from imaginal discs of 4th instar larvae. The genetic linkage map nomenclature was adopted for the chromosome numbering based on the direct positioning of 58 markers that were previously genetically mapped. The smallest, largest, and intermediate chromosomes were numbered as 1, 2, and 3, respectively. For idiogram development, we analyzed and described in detail the morphology and proportions of the mitotic chromosomes. Chromosomes were subdivided into 19 divisions and 72 bands of four different intensities. These idiograms were used for mapping the genomic supercontigs/genetic markers. We also determined the presence of length polymorphism in the q arm of sex-determining chromosome 1 in Cx. quinquefasciatus related to the size of ribosomal locus. Our physical mapping and previous genetic linkage mapping resulted in the chromosomal assignment of 13% of the total genome assembly to the chromosome bands.We provided the first detailed description, nomenclature, and idiograms for the mitotic chromosomes of Cx. quinquefasciatus. Further application of the approach developed in this study will help to improve the quality of the southern house mosquito genome.