RECENTLY AMPLIFIED SATELLITE DNA IN CALLITHRIX ARGENTATA (PRIMATES, PLATYRRHINI)

A satellite DNA has been cloned from the neotropical primate Callithri x argentata and designated Care. The presence of the satellite was ass ayed in New and Old World primates by blot hybridization: Care is high ly amplified in the genomes of all three species belonging to the C. a rgentata species group (C. argentata, C. emiliae, C. humeralifer), but is either absent, or present in only minor amounts, in other primates , including the closely related species, C. jacchus. A completely sequ enced Care monomeric unit was 1528 bp in length and mapped to the telo meric C-band-positive regions of many C. argentata species group chrom osomes. Sequence data from eight Care clones indicated an average diff erence of 3.5% when base substitutions alone were counted. The hybridi zation and sequence data suggest that this satellite underwent a perio d of amplification and dispersal in the genome of a recent ancestor of the C. argentata species group.