Chromosomal evolution in Rodentia

Rodentia is the most species-rich mammalian order and includes several important laboratory model species. The amount of new information on karyotypic and phylogenetic relations within and among rodent taxa is rapidly increasing, but a synthesis of these data is currently lacking. Here, we have integrated information drawn from conventional banding studies, recent comparative painting investigations and molecular phylogenetic reconstructions of different rodent taxa. This permitted a revision of several ancestral karyotypic reconstructions, and a more accurate depiction of rodent chromosomal evolution. Heredity (2012) 108, 4-16; doi:10.1038/hdy.2011.110; published online 16 November 2011