Genes for major ribosomal RNAs (rDNA) are present in multiple copies mainly organized in tandem arrays. The number and position of rDNA loci can change dynamically and their repatterning is presumably driven by other repetitive sequences. We explored a peculiar rDNA organization in several representatives of Lepidoptera with either extremely large or numerous rDNA clusters. We combined molecular cytogenetics with analyses of second- and third-generation sequencing data to show that rDNA spreads as a transcription unit and reveal association between rDNA and various repeats. Furthermore, we performed comparative long read analyses among the species with derived rDNA distribution and moths with a single rDNA locus, which is considered ancestral. Our results suggest that satellite arrays, rather than mobile elements, facilitate homology-mediated spread of rDNA via either integration of extrachromosomal rDNA circles or ectopic recombination. The latter arguably better explains preferential spread of rDNA into terminal regions of lepidopteran chromosomes as efficiency of ectopic recombination depends on the proximity of homologous sequences to telomeres.

Department of Biology Tufts University

European Molecular Biology Laboratory Heidelberg Germany

Faculty of Science University of South Bohemia České Budějovice Czech Republic

Institute of Biology Laboratory of Evolutionary Entomology University of Neuchâtel Neuchâtel Switzerland

Institute of Entomology Biology Centre CAS České Budějovice Czech Republic

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The burst of satellite DNA in Leptidea wood white butterflies and their putative role in karyotype evolution

The Dynamic Interplay Between Ribosomal DNA and Transposable Elements: A Perspective From Genomics and Cytogenetics

The Role of Repetitive Sequences in Repatterning of Major Ribosomal DNA Clusters in Lepidoptera