Chromosome Painting in <b><i>Lonchorhina aurita</i></b> Sheds Light onto the Controversial Phylogenetic Position of Sword-Nosed Bats (Chiroptera, Phyllostomidae)

Abstract

The subfamily Lonchorhininae encompasses 6 species of sword-nosed bats (<i>Lonchorhina</i>) and is one of the most problematic lineages in the Neotropical leaf-nosed bats (Phyllostomidae) phylogeny. There are at least 5 different hypotheses to explain when the subfamily diverged from the remaining phyllostomids, but none with robust statistical support. Here, we generated a chromosome painting homology map of <i>Lonchorhina aurita</i> karyotype (2n = 32 and FN = 60) using whole-chromosome probes of <i>Macrotus californicus</i> (MCA; 2n = 40 and FN = 60). We placed the karyotype changes of <i>L. aurita</i> in a phylogenetic context to discuss the most likely branching position of Lonchorhininae based on karyotypic evolution. We show that <i>L. aurita</i> has a derived karyotype with 24 segments homologous to the 20 MCA chromosomes used as probes. Comparative analyses between 7 published painted bats species across 4 phyllostomid subfamilies (Macrotinae, Phyllostominae, Glossophaginae, and Lonchophyllinae) revealed that one inversion (MCA 4inv) and one fusion (MCA 17 + 18) are shared derived features between the karyotypes of <i>L. aurita</i> and species of Phyllostominae not yet observed in other bats. Our data show that chromosomal homology maps may contribute with new insights into a long-standing phylogenetic debate that has endured for decades.