Combining a biotin-enrichment protocol and 454GS-FLX titanium pyrosequencing technology, we characterised 22 polymorphic microsatellite loci from the parasitic wasp, Habrobracon hebetor (Say) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), a cosmopolitan species commonly used in biological control against a wide range of both major lepidopterous pests of stored products and field crops in different parts of the world. Three multiplex PCR sets were optimised and characterised across 46 H. hebetor specimens from two samples collected from millet fields in Niger. Two to 11 alleles were found per locus and observed heterozygosity ranged from 0.289 to 0.826. Polymorphism was detected in both samples with a similar level of observed heterozygosity (0.482 vs. 0.502) and number of alleles (4.1 vs. 3.6). Deviation from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium was detected at the same five loci in both samples and five or seven more loci in each sample but was not associated with heterozygote deficiencies. Even though evidence for linkage disequilibrium was found between a few alleles, these new loci segregated independently. The variability of the 22 loci will enable estimates of genetic diversity and structure patterns, as well as gene flow between H. hebetor populations at different spatial scales. Cross-species amplifications were successful among the six Bracon spp. tested and nine loci will be particularly appropriate for population genetic studies in B. brevicornis., Madougou Garba, Anne Loiseau, Laure Benoit, Nathalie Gauthier., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Macrocentrus cingulum is an important polyembryonic endoparasitic wasp that attacks larvae of the Asian corn borer, Ostrinia furnacalis (Guenée) and the European corn borer, O. nubilalis (Hübner). Parasitoids use antennae as the main sensory organ to recognize herbivore-induced plant volatiles as host searching cues. The antennal olfaction proteins, odorant receptors (ORs) and ionotropic receptors (IRs) are involved in olfactory signal transduction pathway as a sensory neuron response. In the present study, we constructed a cDNA library from the male and female antennae for identifying the olfaction-related genes in M. cingulum. For that, we sequenced 3160 unique gene sequences and annotated them with gene ontology (GO), cluster of orthologous groups of proteins (COG), and KEGG ontology (KO). Through the homology search, we identified 9 odorant receptors (ORs), 3 ionotropic receptors (IRs) and 1 odorant binding protein (OBP) genes from the cDNA library sequences. Additionally, the expression patterns of these ORs and IRs in different tissues (antennae, heads, thoraxes, abdomens, and legs) were demonstrated by RT-PCR. The qualitative gene expression analyses showed that most of the OR genes were more highly expressed in female than male antennae; whereas IRs, unlike ORs, were more expressed in various male than females tissues. We are the first to report ORs and IRs in M. cingulum, which should help in deciphering the molecular basis of olfaction system in this wasp., Tofael Ahmed, Tian-Tao Zhang, Zhen-Ying Wang, Kang-Lai He, Shu-Xiong Bai., and Obsahuje bibliografii