Karyotype analysis of four jewel-beetle species (Coleoptera, Buprestidae) detected by standard staining, C-banding, AgNOR-banding and CMA3/DAPI staining

Abstract. The male karyotypes of Acmaeodera pilosellae persica Mannerheim, 1837 with 2n=20 (18+neoXY), Sphenoptera scovitzii Faldermann, 1835 (2n=38–46), Dicerca aenea validiuscula Semenov, 1895 – 2n=20 (18+Xy(p)) and Sphaerobothris aghababiani Volkovitsh et Kalashian, 1998 – 2n=16 (14+Xy(p)) were studied using conventional staining and different chromosome banding techniques: C-banding, AgNOR-banding, as well as fluorochrome Chromomycin A(3) (CMA(3)) and DAPI. It is shown that C-positive segments are weakly visible in all four species which indicates a small amount of constitutive heterochromatin (CH). There were no signals after DAPI staining and some positive signals were discovered using CMA(3) staining demonstrating absence of AT-rich DNA and presence of GC-rich clusters of CH. Nucleolus organizing regions (NORs) were revealed using Ag-NOR technique; argentophilic material mostly coincides with positive signals obtained using CMA(3) staining.