Natural selection and genetic diversity maintenance in a parasitic wasp during continuous biological control application

Bingyan Li, Yuange Duan, Zhenyong Du, Xuan Wang, Shanlin Liu, Zengbei Feng, Li Tian, Fan Song, Hailin Yang, Wanzhi Cai, Zhonglong Lin () and Hu Li ()
Additional contact information
Bingyan Li: College of Plant Protection, China Agricultural University
Yuange Duan: College of Plant Protection, China Agricultural University
Zhenyong Du: College of Plant Protection, China Agricultural University
Xuan Wang: College of Plant Protection, China Agricultural University
Shanlin Liu: College of Plant Protection, China Agricultural University
Zengbei Feng: College of Plant Protection, China Agricultural University
Li Tian: College of Plant Protection, China Agricultural University
Fan Song: College of Plant Protection, China Agricultural University
Hailin Yang: Tobacco Company
Wanzhi Cai: College of Plant Protection, China Agricultural University
Zhonglong Lin: Yunnan Tobacco Company of China National Tobacco Corporation
Hu Li: College of Plant Protection, China Agricultural University

Nature Communications, 2024, vol. 15, issue 1, 1-16

Abstract: Abstract Aphidius gifuensis is a parasitoid wasp and primary endoparasitoid enemy of the peach potato aphid, Myzus persicae. Artificially reared, captive wasps of this species have been extensively and effectively used to control populations of aphids and limit crop loss. However, the consequences of large-scale releasing of captive A. gifuensis, such as genetic erosion and reduced fitness in wild populations of this species, remains unclear. Here, we sequence the genomes of 542 A. gifuensis individuals collected across China, including 265 wild and 277 human-intervened samples. Population genetic analyses on wild individuals recovered Yunnan populations as the ancestral group with the most complex genetic structure. We also find genetic signature of environmental adaptation during the dispersal of wild populations from Yunnan to other regions. While comparative genomic analyses of captive wasps revealed a decrease in genetic diversity during long-term rearing, population genomic analyses revealed signatures of natural selection by several biotic (host plants) or abiotic (climate) factors, which support maintenance of the gene pool of wild populations in spite of the introduction of captive wasps. Therefore, the impact of large-scale release is reduced. Our study suggests that A. gifuensis is a good system for exploring the genetic and evolutionary effects of mass rearing and release on species commonly used as biocontrol agents.

Date: 2024
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-024-45631-2 Abstract (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:nat:natcom:v:15:y:2024:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-024-45631-2

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
https://www.nature.com/ncomms/

DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-45631-2

Access Statistics for this article

Nature Communications is currently edited by Nathalie Le Bot, Enda Bergin and Fiona Gillespie

More articles in Nature Communications from Nature
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().