The Passifloraceae is represented by species of tropical and subtropical origin. The Passiflora is the richest genus with approximately 450 species, 200 of them being native to Brazil. Recent karyological studies have reported the basic chromosome number for the Passiflora genus as x = 6, whereas x = 9, x = 10 and x = 12 were established as secondary basic numbers. High rates of fertility occur in most Passiflora species, since both meiotic index and pollen viability are above 90%. Unusual meiotic behavior has been described in some taxa. Unviable pollen were observed in some diploids species. The genome size varies from 1.83 to 5.36 pg, and significant interspecific variance has been observed. Studies using the FISH methodology have shown that there are two to three rDNA 45S sites and one 5S site in the species analyzed. In this review, information about the above-mentioned studies is presented and discussed in detail.
Karyotype; banding; meiotic behavior; pollen viability; nuclear DNA content; FISH
