Effects of Caffeine and Chlorogenic Acid on Propidium Iodide Accessibility to DNA: Consequences on Genome Size Evaluation in Coffee Tree

Bias in estimates of genome size using flow cytometry

Some species are rich in endogenous substances that may interfere with propidium staining of the nucleus, and thus with estimations of genome size using flow cytometry. By measuring accessibility of petunia DNA to propidium iodide Noirot et al. (pp. 259-264) demonstrate that the large amounts of caffeine and chlorogenic acid present in Coffea spp. have the potential to confound estimates of nuclear DNA.