Molecular-genetic characteristics of gall-forming aphids Pemphigus spp. – the pests of poplars in Yenisei Siberia
Keywords:
gall-inducing aphids, DNA barcoding, intraspecific variability, poplars, Krasnoyarsk Area, Republic of KhakassiaAbstract
Pemphigus aphids (Hemiptera: Aphididae: Pemphigini) are gall-forming pests of poplars and agricultural crops. Morphological variability and cryptic species hinder taxonomic identification and range assessment. The molecular genetics of Palearctic species remain poorly understood, and no such studies have been conducted for Siberian representatives. Our pioneer study presents the results of DNA barcoding and analysis of genetic variability of four species (Pemphigus bursarius, P. matsumurai, P. passeki, P. populi) collected in Krasnoyarsk Krai and the Republic of Khakassia and identified by morphology. Holarctic species P. bursarius demonstrated high intraspecific variability (2.93 %) in COI mtDNA gene. The Siberian specimens of this species from black poplar (Pop. nigra) were genetically close to the Canadian population. A specimen from the Republic of Khakassia from laurel poplar (Pop. laurifolia) showed a genetic distance of 5.2 % from P. bursarius from Pop. nigra, highlighting the presence of a distant lineage. The Siberian specimen of P. matsumurai grouped with Chinese specimens of the same species and with specimens of P. sinobursarius stored in GenBank (the genetic distance varied from 0.46 to 1.04 %), not allowing to split these species using DNA barcoding. For the first time, DNA barcodes of P. populi and P. passeki have been obtained, which can serve as reference sequences for species identification. This study lays the ground for building molecular genetic libraries to study the phylogenetics and phylogeography of Pemphigus spp. in Siberia, and for developing reference DNA barcodes enabling precise identification and analysis of invasive processes in pest species.
