Karyotype and Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization Analysis of 15 Lilium Species from China

Abstract

Karyotype comparison and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) were conducted to analyze the wild Lilium species distributed in China. The karyotype results revealed that all species except Lilium lancifolium (2n = 3X = 36) were diploid and had two pairs of metacentric or submetacentric chromosomes. The karyotypes of all species are similar. FISH analysis revealed that there are 5–12 45S rRNA gene loci dispersed on the chromosomes of the 14 diploid species, and 15 45S rRNA gene loci were detected in the triploid species L. lancifolium. Most of the FISH signals were detected on the long arms and the centromeric regions. Three samples of L. brownii [Hubei, China (lat. 31°28′N, long. 110°23′E); Liaoning, China (lat. 40°07′N, long. 124°19′E); and Guangxi, China (lat. 25°06′N, long. 107°27′E)] showed very similar chromosome patterns in both the karyotype and the FISH analyses, further demonstrating that these samples belonged to the same species. L. brownii is widely distributed in China from latitude 25°06′N to 40°07′N, indicating that it is highly adaptable to the environment.