Pensoft Publishers, Comparative Cytogenetics, 3(7), p. 217-227, 2013
DOI: 10.3897/compcytogen.v7i3.5398
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A karyological analysis on six Italian populations the slow worm (Anguis veronensis Pollini, 1818) was performed and their genetic differentiation at the mitochondrial 16S rRNA gene fragment from a Spanish sample has been assessed. The Italian populations were karyologically uniform, all showing 2n=44 elements, of which 20 were macrochromosomes and 24 microchromosomes. Comparison with literature data on Central European populations showed a difference on the morphology of the 10(th) chromosome pair: submetacentric in Italian populations and telocentric in the Central European ones. Our analysis showed the presence of a fragile site on chromosomes of this pair, suggesting its propensity for structural rearrangements. Analysis of the 16S rRNA gene fragment showed uniformity among Italian populations (uncorrected genetic distance of 0.4%), and their genetic distinctness from the Spanish individual (uncorrected genetic distance of 4.2%). Our results confirm the existence of two different Anguis fragilis Linnaeus, 1758 lineages, each one characterized by a different cytotype.