scholarly journals A horizontally transferred autonomous Helitron became a full polydnavirus segment inCotesia vestalis

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pedro Heringer ◽  
Guilherme B. Dias ◽  
Gustavo C. S. Kuhn
Keyword(s):  
Transposable Element ◽  
Virulence Gene ◽  
Parasitoid Wasp ◽  
Unknown Origin ◽  
Wasp Species ◽  
Cotesia Vestalis ◽  
The Family ◽  
Gene Vectors ◽  
Horizontal Transfers ◽  
Lepidopteran Host

ABSTRACTBracoviruses associate symbiotically with thousands of parasitoid wasp species in the family Braconidae, working as virulence gene vectors, and allowing the development of wasp larvae within hosts. These viruses are composed by multiple DNA circles that are packaged into infective particles and injected together with wasp's eggs during parasitization. One of the viral segments ofCotesia vestalisbracovirus contains a gene that has been previously described as a helicase of unknown origin. Here we demonstrate that this gene is a Rep/Helicase from an intact Helitron transposable element that covers the viral segment almost entirely. We also provide evidence that this element underwent at least two horizontal transfers, which appear to have occurred consecutively: first from a Drosophila host ancestor to the genome of the parasitoid waspCotesia vestalisand its bracovirus, and then fromC. vestalisto a lepidopteran host (Bombyx mori). Our results reinforce the idea of parasitoid wasps as frequent agents of horizontal transfers in eukaryotes. Additionally, this Helitron-bracovirus segment is the first example of a transposable element that effectively became a whole viral circle.

The complete genome of Chelonus insularis reveals dynamic arrangement of genome components in parasitoid wasps that produce bracoviruses

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meng Mao ◽  
Michael R. Strand ◽  
Gaelen R. Burke
Keyword(s):  
Complete Genome ◽  
Virulence Genes ◽  
Virulence Gene ◽  
Parasitoid Wasp ◽  
Parasitoid Wasps ◽  
Wasp Species ◽  
Larval Parasitoid ◽  
Large Sets ◽  
Organizational Features ◽  
Chelonus Insularis

Bracoviruses (BVs) are endogenized nudiviruses in parasitoid wasps of the microgastroid complex (family Braconidae). Microgastroid wasps have coopted nudivirus genes to produce replication-defective virions that females use to transfer virulence genes to parasitized hosts. The microgastroid complex further consists of six subfamilies and ∼50,000 species but current understanding of BV gene inventories and organization primarily derives from analysis of two wasp species in the subfamily Microgastrinae ( Microplitis demolitor and Cotesia congregata ) that produce M. demolitor BV (MdBV) and C. congregata BV (CcBV). Notably, several genomic features of MdBV and CcBV remain conserved since divergence of M. demolitor and C. congregata ∼53 million years ago (MYA). However, it is unknown whether these conserved traits more broadly reflect BV evolution, because no complete genomes exist for any microgastroid wasps outside of the Microgastrinae. In this regard, the subfamily Cheloninae is of greatest interest because it diverged earliest from the Microgastrinae (∼85 MYA) after endogenization of the nudivirus ancestor. Here, we present the complete genome of Chelonus insularis , which is an egg-larval parasitoid in the Cheloninae that produces C. insularis BV (CinsBV). We report that the inventory of nudivirus genes in C. insularis is conserved but are dissimilarly organized when compared to M. demolitor and C. congregata . Reciprocally, CinsBV proviral segments share organizational features with MdBV and CcBV but virulence gene inventories exhibit almost no overlap. Altogether, our results point to the functional importance of a conserved inventory of nudivirus genes and a dynamic set of virulence genes for the successful parasitism of hosts. Our results also suggest organizational features previously identified in MdBV and CcBV are likely not essential for BV virion formation. Significance Bracoviruses are a remarkable example of virus endogenization, because large sets of genes from a nudivirus ancestor continue to produce virions that thousands of wasp species rely upon to parasitize hosts. Understanding how these genes interact and have been coopted by wasps for novel functions is of broad interest in the study of virus evolution. This manuscript characterizes bracovirus genome components in the parasitoid wasp Chelonus insularis , which together with existing wasp genomes captures a large portion of the diversity among wasp species that produce bracoviruses. Results provide new information about how bracovirus genome components are organized in different wasps while also providing additional insights on key features required for function.

scholarly journals Sight of parasitoid wasps accelerates sexual behavior and upregulates a micropeptide gene in Drosophila

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shimaa A. M. Ebrahim ◽  
Gaëlle J. S. Talross ◽  
John R. Carlson
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Nervous System ◽  
Sexual Behavior ◽  
Behavioral Response ◽  
Mutational Analysis ◽  
Parasitoid Wasp ◽  
Parasitoid Wasps ◽  
Wasp Species ◽  
Defensive Responses ◽  
Vast Range

AbstractParasitoid wasps inflict widespread death upon the insect world. Hundreds of thousands of parasitoid wasp species kill a vast range of insect species. Insects have evolved defensive responses to the threat of wasps, some cellular and some behavioral. Here we find an unexpected response of adult Drosophila to the presence of certain parasitoid wasps: accelerated mating behavior. Flies exposed to certain wasp species begin mating more quickly. The effect is mediated via changes in the behavior of the female fly and depends on visual perception. The sight of wasps induces the dramatic upregulation in the fly nervous system of a gene that encodes a 41-amino acid micropeptide. Mutational analysis reveals that the gene is essential to the behavioral response of the fly. Our work provides a foundation for further exploration of how the activation of visual circuits by the sight of a wasp alters both sexual behavior and gene expression.

A new species of Hexacola Foerster (Hymenoptera: Figitidae), parasitoid of Lemnaphila neotropica Lizarralde de Grosso (Diptera: Ephydridae)

Zootaxa ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 2622 (1) ◽  
pp. 42 ◽  
Author(s):  
ANA L. GADDI ◽  
NORMA B. DÍAZ ◽  
FABIANA E. GALLARDO
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Buenos Aires ◽  
Parasitoid Wasp ◽  
Economic Importance ◽  
Wasp Species ◽  
Diagnostic Characters ◽  
La Plata ◽  
Shore Fly ◽  
A New Species

A new parasitoid wasp species, the eucoiline Hexacola lemnaphilae Gaddi & Díaz, is described. Specimens were reared from pupae of Lemnaphila neotropica Lizarralde de Grosso (Diptera: Ephydridae), a shore fly that mines least duckweed, Lemna minuta Kunth (Lemnaceae); the material examined was collected in Berisso (Buenos Aires, Argentina) and is housed in the collection of the División Entomología of the Museo de La Plata, Argentina. Photographs of diagnostic characters and data about the ecological and economic importance of these organisms are included.

Extrapolations from field studies and known faunas converge on dramatically increased estimates of global microgastrine parasitoid wasp species richness (Hymenoptera: Braconidae)

2012 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 530-536 ◽  
Author(s):  
Josephine J. Rodriguez ◽  
Jose L. Fernández-Triana ◽  
M. Alex Smith ◽  
Daniel H. Janzen ◽  
Winnie Hallwachs ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Parasitoid Wasp ◽  
Field Studies ◽  
Wasp Species

scholarly journals Variation in the diversity and richness of parasitoid wasps based on sampling effort

PeerJ ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. e4642 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas E. Saunders ◽  
Darren F. Ward
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Austral Summer ◽  
Parasitoid Wasp ◽  
Parasitoid Wasps ◽  
Sampling Effort ◽  
Summer Period ◽  
Wasp Species ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Number Of Individuals ◽  
The Relationship

Parasitoid wasps are a mega-diverse, ecologically dominant, but poorly studied component of global biodiversity. In order to maximise the efficiency and reduce the cost of their collection, the application of optimal sampling techniques is necessary. Two sites in Auckland, New Zealand were sampled intensively to determine the relationship between sampling effort and observed species richness of parasitoid wasps from the family Ichneumonidae. Twenty traps were deployed at each site at three different times over the austral summer period, resulting in a total sampling effort of 840 Malaise-trap-days. Rarefaction techniques and non-parametric estimators were used to predict species richness and to evaluate the variation and completeness of sampling. Despite an intensive Malaise-trapping regime over the summer period, no asymptote of species richness was reached. At best, sampling captured two-thirds of parasitoid wasp species present. The estimated total number of species present depended on the month of sampling and the statistical estimator used. Consequently, the use of fewer traps would have caught only a small proportion of all species (one trap 7–21%; two traps 13–32%), and many traps contributed little to the overall number of individuals caught. However, variation in the catch of individual Malaise traps was not explained by seasonal turnover of species, vegetation or environmental conditions surrounding the trap, or distance of traps to one another. Overall the results demonstrate that even with an intense sampling effort the community is incompletely sampled. The use of only a few traps and/or for very short periods severely limits the estimates of richness because (i) fewer individuals are caught leading to a greater number of singletons; and (ii) the considerable variation of individual traps means some traps will contribute few or no individuals. Understanding how sampling effort affects the richness and diversity of parasitoid wasps is a useful foundation for future studies.

scholarly journals Espécie-especificidade das vespas de figo: um estudo com figueiras exóticas

1991 ◽  
Vol 13 (13) ◽  
pp. 117 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rodolfo Antônio de Figueiredo
Keyword(s):  
South Asia ◽  
Species Specificity ◽  
Wasp Species ◽  
The Family

The figs are dependent on wasps of the Family Agaonidae for pollination of their flowers. As there is some discussion about the species-specifity of Agaonidae and Ficus, this study with exotic figs was carried out. There was no found any pollinator wasp in the figs studied. Only F. microcarpa, a native of South Asia and Australia, was pollinated by the same wasp species that occur in its native area. These results suggest the species-specificity for figs and pollinator wasps.

scholarly journals Behavioural and transcriptional changes in post-mating females of an egg parasitoid wasp species

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 181453 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peng-Cheng Liu ◽  
De-Jun Hao
Keyword(s):  
Parasitoid Wasp ◽  
Acid Synthesis ◽  
Egg Parasitoid ◽  
Transcriptional Analysis ◽  
Physiological Changes ◽  
Wasp Species ◽  
Egg Maturation ◽  
Transcriptional Changes ◽  
Upregulated Genes ◽  
Substance Transport

In many animals, mating is essential for the production of offspring by females; however, mating seems to not be necessary in Hymenoptera insects. Virgin females can produce offspring, although the sex of the offspring is all male. Usually, behavioural and physiological changes are induced by mating in female insects, including parasitoid wasps. However, very little is known about the resulting changes in gene expression that contribute to the post-mating response in females; thus, we studied this aspect in the egg parasitoid wasp species Anastatus disparis (Hymenoptera: Eupelmidae) by transcriptional analysis. A total of 55 differentially expressed genes were identified in post-mating females, and most of the genes (90.9%) were downregulated. Upregulated genes encoded products that were mainly involved in fatty acid synthesis and pyrimidine metabolism, while the downregulated genes were mainly involved in substance transport and metabolism. In addition, post-mating A. disparis females exhibited a tendency to accelerate egg maturation and became unreceptive to further mating. Based on the transcriptional data, we discuss how specific genes mediate these behavioural and physiological changes. Overall, our study provided new and comprehensive insights into post-mating changes in females and provided a basis for future mechanistic studies.

Octopamine-like immunoreactivity in the brain and suboesophageal ganglion of two parasitic wasps, Cotesia glomerata and Cotesia rubecula

2006 ◽  
Vol 56 (2) ◽  
pp. 247-257 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hans Smid ◽  
Brenda van der Zee ◽  
Maartje Bleeker
Keyword(s):  
Learning And Memory ◽  
Parasitoid Wasp ◽  
Staining Intensity ◽  
Cotesia Glomerata ◽  
Mushroom Bodies ◽  
Suboesophageal Ganglion ◽  
Wasp Species ◽  
Labelling Intensity ◽  
Protocerebral Bridge ◽  
The Brain

AbstractTwo closely related parasitoid wasp species, Cotesia glomerata L. and C. rubecula Marshall (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), differ in their display of associative learning and memory during host searching. As octopamine is involved in learning and memory in insects we investigated octopaminergic pathways in the brain and suboesophageal ganglion (SOG) of the two wasps. We used an anti-octopamine antibody and subsequent whole mount analysis using a confocal laserscanning microscope and pertinent software. Three groups of octopaminergic cells were located in the brain and suboesophageal ganglion. One group was located near the antennal lobes and consisted of six to eight cell bodies. A second group was located ventrally in the SOG and was most likely formed by ventral unpaired median (VUM) and VCBN (ventral cell body neurite) neurons. A third group was located in the pars intercerebralis and consisted of four to six cells. Octopamine-like immunoreactivity was furthermore present in the central body, protocerebral bridge, the SOG, antennal lobe, near the alpha and beta lobes of the mushroom bodies and in the mushroom body calyces. Due to the used methods and a high variability in staining intensity it was not possible to detect if there were any differences in the number of neurons, in arborisation patterns or in labelling intensity between the two wasp species.

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