Annals of Botany 95/1 © Annals of Botany Company 2005; all rights reserved
The C-value Enigma in Plants and Animals: A Review of Parallels and an Appeal for Partnership
Department of Entomology, The Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD, UK
* E-mail rgregory{at}genomesize.com
Received: 5 November 2003 Returned for revision: 18 November 2003 Accepted: 25 November 2003
• Aims Plants and animals represent the first two kingdoms recognized, and remain the two best-studied groups in terms of nuclear DNA content variation. Unfortunately, the traditional chasm between botanists and zoologists has done much to prevent an integrated approach to resolving the C-value enigma, the long-standing puzzle surrounding the evolution of genome size. This grand division is both unnecessary and counterproductive, and the present review aims to illustrate the numerous links between the patterns and processes found in plants and animals so that a stronger unity can be developed in the future.
• Scope This review discusses the numerous parallels that exist in genome size evolution between plants and animals, including (i) the construction of large databases, (ii) the patterns of DNA content variation among taxa, (iii) the cytological, morphological, physiological and evolutionary impacts of genome size, (iv) the mechanisms by which genomes change in size, and (v) the development of new methodologies for estimating DNA contents.
• Conclusions The fundamental questions of the C-value enigma clearly transcend taxonomic boundaries, and increased communication is therefore urged among those who study genome size evolution, whether in plants, animals or other organisms.
Key words: Body size, cell size, complexity, C-value enigma, C-value paradox, database, development, DNA content, genome size, introns, physiology, selfish DNA, sequencing, transposable elements
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