Characterization of novel microsatellite markers forHyphantria cuneaand implications for other Lepidoptera
AbstractThis is the first report of microsatellite markers (simple sequence repeats, SSR) for fall webworm,Hyphantria cunea(Drury) (Lepidoptera: Arctiidae), an important quarantine pest in some European and Asian countries. Here, we developed 48 microsatellite markers forH. cuneafrom SSR enrichment libraries. Sequences isolated from libraries were sorted into four categories and analyzed. Our results suggest that sequences classified asGroupedshould not be used for microsatellite primer design. The genetic diversity of microsatellite loci was assessed in 72 individuals from three populations. The number of alleles per locus ranged from 2 to 5 with an average of 3. The observed and expected heterozygosities of loci ranged from 0 to 0.958 and 0 to 0.773, respectively. A total of 18 out of 153 locus/population combinations deviated significantly from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium. Moreover, significant linkage disequilibrium was detected in one pair of loci (1275 pairs in total). In the neutral test, two loci were grouped into the candidate category for positive selection and the remainder into the neutral category. In addition, a complex mutation pattern was observed for these loci, andFSTperformed better than didRSTfor the estimation of population differentiation in different mutation patterns. The results of the present study can be used for population genetic studies ofH. cunea.