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Molecular cytogenetic studies in the ladybird beetle Henosepilachnaargus Geoffroy, 1762 (Coleoptera, Coccinellidae, Epilachninae).

ABSTRACT: The ladybird Henosepilachnaargus Geoffroy, 1762 has been cytogenetically studied. In addition we have conducted a review of chromosome numbers and the chromosomal system of sex determination available in the literature in species belonging to the genus Henosepilachna and in its closely related genus Epilachna. Chromosome number of Henosepilachnaargus was 2n=18, including the sex chromosome pair, a common diploid chromosome number within the tribe Epilachnini. The study of prophase I meiotic chromosomes showed the typical Xyp "parachute" bivalent as in the majority of species of Coccinellidae. C-banding and fluorescent staining with AT-specific DAPI fluorochrome dye have been carried out for the first time in H. argus. C-banding technique revealed that heterochromatic blocks are pericentromerically located and DAPI staining showed that this heterochromatin is AT rich. Fluorescence in situ hybridizations using rDNA and the telomeric TTAGG sequence as probes have been carried out. FISH using rDNA showed that the nucleolar organizing region is located on the short arm of the X chromosome. FISH with the telomeric sequence revealed that in this species telomeres of chromosomes are composed of the pentanucleotide TTAGG repeats. This is the first study on the telomeric sequences in Coccinellidae.

SUBMITTER: Mora P

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4547035 | biostudies-other | 2015

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other

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Project description:The tribe Coccinellini is a group of relatively large ladybird beetles that exhibits remarkable morphological and biological diversity. Many species are aphidophagous, feeding as larvae and adults on aphids, but some species also feed on other hemipterous insects (i.e., heteropterans, psyllids, whiteflies), beetle and moth larvae, pollen, fungal spores, and even plant tissue. Several species are biological control agents or widespread invasive species (e.g., Harmonia axyridis (Pallas)). Despite the ecological importance of this tribe, relatively little is known about the phylogenetic relationships within it. The generic concepts within the tribe Coccinellini are unstable and do not reflect a natural classification, being largely based on regional revisions. This impedes the phylogenetic study of important traits of Coccinellidae at a global scale (e.g. the evolution of food preferences and biogeography).We present the most comprehensive phylogenetic analysis of Coccinellini to date, based on three nuclear and one mitochondrial gene sequences of 38 taxa, which represent all major Coccinellini lineages. The phylogenetic reconstruction supports the monophyly of Coccinellini and its sister group relationship to Chilocorini. Within Coccinellini, three major clades were recovered that do not correspond to any previously recognised divisions, questioning the traditional differentiation between Halyziini, Discotomini, Tytthaspidini, and Singhikaliini. Ancestral state reconstructions of food preferences and morphological characters support the idea of aphidophagy being the ancestral state in Coccinellini. This indicates a transition from putative obligate scale feeders, as seen in the closely related Chilocorini, to more agile general predators.Our results suggest that the classification of Coccinellini has been misled by convergence in morphological traits. The evolutionary history of Coccinellini has been very dynamic in respect to changes in host preferences, involving multiple independent host switches from different insect orders to fungal spores and plants tissues. General predation on ephemeral aphids might have created an opportunity to easily adapt to mixed or specialised diets (e.g. obligate mycophagy, herbivory, predation on various hemipteroids or larvae of leaf beetles (Chrysomelidae)). The generally long-lived adults of Coccinellini can consume pollen and floral nectars, thereby surviving periods of low prey frequency. This capacity might have played a central role in the diversification history of Coccinellini.

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Molecular cytogenetic studies in the ladybird beetle Henosepilachnaargus Geoffroy, 1762 (Coleoptera, Coccinellidae, Epilachninae).

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