Flow cytometric determination of genome size for eight commercially important fish species in China

The genome size (C value) of eight commercially important fish species in China was measured using flow cytometry. Chicken (Gallus domesticus) erythrocytes were used as reference cells. When using propidium iodide (PI) as the fluorescent dye, genome sizes were 1.09 ± 0.08, 2.75 ± 0.12, 1.05 ± 0.05, 1.35 ± 0.11, 0.99 ± 0.05, 0.90 ± 0.08, 0.90 ± 0.07, and 0.88 ± 0.07 pg for Japanese eel (Anguilla japonica), mullet (Myxocyprinus asiaticus), yellowcheek carp (Elopichthys bambusa), blunt snout bream (Megalobrama amblycephala), yellow catfish (Pelteobagrus fulvidraco), ricefield eel (Monopterus albus), mandarin fish (Siniperca chuatsi), and snakehead (Ophicephalus argus), respectively. However, genome sizes were 1.25 ± 0.00, 3.08 ± 0.02, 1.25 ± 0.00, 1.57 ± 0.01, 0.96 ± 0.01, 1.00 ± 0.01, 0.91 ± 0.01, and 0.89 ± 0.01 pg for these fishes, respectively, when 4', 6-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI) was used as the fluorescent dye. Regardless of the dye used, the more evolutionarily advanced species had a smaller genome size than those with a lower evolutionary status. For each species, we also measured the size of erythrocytes and their nucleus and evaluated the relationships between erythrocyte size, nucleus size, chromosome number, and genome size. Genome size was positively correlated with erythrocyte nucleus size and chromosome number when using PI as the fluorescent dye, but it was only correlated with erythrocyte nucleus size when DAPI was used.