Chloroplast Genetics of Chlamydomonas. II. Mapping by Cosegregation Frequency Analysis

This paper presents segregation and cosegregation data for a set of 15 chloroplast genes of Chlamydomonas, and uses these data to generate a linear map of the chloroplast genome. The data were derived from pedigree analysis of a total of 1596 zoospore clones resulting from 12 crosses in each of which 4 to 7 pairs of chloroplast alleles were segregating. The crosses are a subset of those previously described (Sager and Ramanis 1976). By means of pedigree analysis, Type II segregations (nonreciprocal conversion-like events) were distinguished from Type III segregations (reciprocal events). The average frequency of Type II segregation was found to be the same for all 15 genes, indicating randomness of this event with respect to map location (Figure 1). Type III segregations occurred with a different and characteristic frequency for each gene, and were interpreted as a measure of the distance of each gene from the postulated centromere-like attachment point.Cosegregations, involving two or more genes, occurred with frequencies characteristic of the particular genes and much lower than expected for the product of single-gene events, indicating strong positive interference. Pairwise cosegregation frequencies provided unambiguous data for the gene order, confirmed by cosegregation runs of three or more genes. Apparent lengths of cosegregation runs, as fractions of the total map, indicate much longer stretches of gene conversion-like events than have been reported for other genetic systems. Comparisons of cosegregation frequencies in cross 20 after 15'', 30'' and 15'' UV irradiation of the mt(+) before mating, indicate little if any consistent effect of this irradiation on segregation events.