HŘIBOVÁ, Eva, ČÍŽKOVÁ, Jana, CHRISTELOVÁ, Pavla, TAUDIEN, S., DE LANGHE, E., DOLEŽEL, Jaroslav. The ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 Sequence Region in the Musaceae: Structure, Diversity and Use in Molecular Phylogeny. PLoS ONE. 2011, 6(3), e17863-e17863. ISSN 1932-6203. E-ISSN 1932-6203

Genes coding for 45S ribosomal RNA are organized in tandem arrays of up to several thousand copies and contain 18S, 5.8S and 26S rRNA units separated by internal transcribed spacers ITS1 and ITS2. While the rRNA units are evolutionary conserved, ITS show high level of interspecific divergence and have been used frequently in genetic diversity and phylogenetic studies. In this work we report on the structure and diversity of the ITS region in 87 representatives of the family Musaceae. We provide the first detailed information on ITS sequence diversity in the genus Musa and describe the presence of more than one type of ITS sequence within individual species. Both Sanger sequencing of amplified ITS regions and whole genome 454 sequencing lead to similar phylogenetic inferences. We show that it is necessary to identify putative pseudogenic ITS sequences, which may have negative effect on phylogenetic reconstruction at lower taxonomic levels.