Characterization and discrimination of three Rhopalosiphum species (Homoptera: Aphididae) based on isozymes

Lázzari, Sonia M. N.

doi:10.1590/S0101-81751992000100015

Abstract

Seventeen clones of Rhopalosiphum padi (Linnaeus, 1758), 14 of R. maidis (Fitch, 1856), and two of R. insertum (Walker, 1849), representing a wide range of host plants and geographic distribution, were examined electrophoretically to determine intra and interspecific variation. Twenty-one enzyme systems were tested using starch-gel techniques. The electromorph variation within species was low, as expected for parthenogenetic organisms. Frequency of heterozygotes was also relatively low for most populations. The percentage of polymorphic loci ranged from 0% to 27.3% in R. padi, but it was lower (0% to 18.2%) in the completely an holocyclic R. maidis. No consistent correlation between band patterns and host plant or geographic origin could be established for R. padi and R. maidis. The distinction between R. padi and R. insertum was made by Est-1, Lap-2, Pgm, Got-1,and α-gpdh.The enzymes Est-2, G-3pdh, Sdh, and Got-2 were useful to separate R. maidis from R. padi, while Est-1, Lap-2, Got-1, and α-gpdh, in addition to the first three mentioned above, separated R. maidis from R. insertum. However, many other loci shared only one electromorph and had another that was useful to partially distinguish the species. The utilization of starch-gel electrophoresis as a taxonomic tool in distinguishing populations and species of aphids and its combination with other taxonomic methods are briefly discussed.

Rhopalosiphum; Aphididae; Homoptera; isozymes

Characterization and discrimination of three Rhopalosiphum species (Homoptera: Aphididae) based on isozymes¹ 1 Contribuição número 764 do Departamento de Zoologia, Universidade Federal do Paraná.

Sonia M. N. Lázzari

Departamento de Zoologia, Universidade Federal do Paraná. Caixa Postal 19020, 81531-970 Curitiba, Paraná, Brasil

ABSTRACT

Seventeen clones of Rhopalosiphum padi (Linnaeus, 1758), 14 of R. maidis (Fitch, 1856), and two of R. insertum (Walker, 1849), representing a wide range of host plants and geographic distribution, were examined electrophoretically to determine intra and interspecific variation. Twenty-one enzyme systems were tested using starch-gel techniques. The electromorph variation within species was low, as expected for parthenogenetic organisms. Frequency of heterozygotes was also relatively low for most populations. The percentage of polymorphic loci ranged from 0% to 27.3% in R. padi, but it was lower (0% to 18.2%) in the completely an holocyclic R. maidis. No consistent correlation between band patterns and host plant or geographic origin could be established for R. padi and R. maidis. The distinction between R. padi and R. insertum was made by Est-1, Lap-2, Pgm, Got-1,and α-gpdh.The enzymes Est-2, G-3pdh, Sdh, and Got-2 were useful to separate R. maidis from R. padi, while Est-1, Lap-2, Got-1, and α-gpdh, in addition to the first three mentioned above, separated R. maidis from R. insertum. However, many other loci shared only one electromorph and had another that was useful to partially distinguish the species. The utilization of starch-gel electrophoresis as a taxonomic tool in distinguishing populations and species of aphids and its combination with other taxonomic methods are briefly discussed.

Key words: Rhopalosiphum, Aphididae, Homoptera, isozymes

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. I am especially grateful to Dr. William W. Steiner, BCIRL-USDA, Columbia, Missouri, USA, for his advices on the electrophoretic technique and use of his lab facilities. This study was part of my PhD thesis at the University of Minnesota, MN, USA. It was partially supported by CAPES and UFPR (MEC - Brazilian government).

BIBLIOGRAPHIC REFERENCES

Recebido em 02.XI.1992; aceito em 07.VI.1993.

AVISE, J.C. 1974. Systematic value of electrophoretic data. Syst. Zool. 23:465-481.
BLACKMAN, R.L. 1979. Stability and variation in aphid clonal lineages. Biol. J. Linn. Soc. 11:259-277.
BLACKMAN, R.L. & V.F. EASTOP. 1984. Aphids on the world's crops: an identificaton and information guide. J. Wiley & Sons. Chichester, UK, 466p.
LOXDALE, H.D.; P. CASTAÑERA & CP. BROOKES. 1983. Electrophoretic study of enzymes from cereal aphid populations. 1. Electrophoretic techniques and staining systems for characterizing enzymes from six species of cereal aphids (Hemiptera: Aphididae). Bull. Entomol. Res. 73:645-657.
LOXDALE, H.D.; I.J. TARR; C.P. WEBER; C.P. BROOKES; P.G.N. DIGBY & P. CASTAÑERA. 1985a. Electrophoretic study of enzymes from cereal aphid populations. 3. Spatial and temporal genetic variation of populations of Sitobion avenae (F.) (Hemiptera: Aphididae). Bull. Entomol. Res. 75:121-141.
LOXDALE, H.D.; J.A. RHODES & J.S. FOX. 1985b. Electrophoretic study of enzymes from cereal aphid populations. 4. Detection of hidden genetic variation within populations of the grain aphid Sitobion avenae (F.) (Hemiptera: Aphididae). Theor. Appl. Genet. 70:407-412.
RICHARDS, W.R. 1960. A synopsis of the genus Rhopalosiphum in Canada (Homoptera: Aphididae). Can. Entomol. Suppl. 13:1-51.
SELANDER, R.K. 1976. Genie variation in natural populations, p. 21-45. In: F. J. Ayala (ed.), Molecular Evolution. Sinauer Associates, Massachusetts.
SINGH, S.M. & T.K. CUNNINGHAM. 1981. Morphological and genetic differentiation in aphids (Aphididae). Can. Ent. 113:539-549.
STEINER, W.W.M. 1988. Electrophoretic techniques for the genetic study of aphids, p. 135-143. In: A.K. Minks & P. Harrewijn (eds.), Aphids. Their biology, natural enemies and control. Vol. B. Elsevier Sc. Publ. Amsterdam.
STEINER, W.W.M. & D.J. JOSLYN. 1979. Electrophoretic techniques for the genetic study of mosquitoes. Mosq. News 39:35-54.
STEINER, W.W.M.; D.J. VOEGTLIN; M.E. IRWIN & G. KAMPMEIER. 1985a. Electrophoretic comparison of aphid species: detecting differences based on taxonomic status and host plant. Comp. Biochem. Physiol. 81:295-299.
STEINER, W.W.M.; D.J. VOEGTLIN; M.E. IRWIN. 1985b. Genetic differentiation and its bearing on migration in North American populations of the corn leaf aphid, Rhopalosiphum maidis (Fitch) (Homoptera: Aphididae). Ann. Entomol. Soc. Am. 78:518-525.
TOMIUK, J. & K. WÖHRMANN. 1980. Enzyme variability in populations of aphids. Theor. Appl. Genet. 57:125-127.
______. 1983. Enzyme polymorphism and taxonomy of aphid species. Z. zool. Syst. Evolutionsforsch. 21:266-274.
VOEGTLIN, D.J., W.W.M. STEINER & M.E. IRWIN. 1987. Searching for the source of the annual spring migrants of Rhopalosiphum maidis (Homoptera: Aphididae) in North America, p. 120-133. In: J. Holman, J. Pelikán, A.F.G. Dixon, & L. Weismann (eds.), Population structure, genetics and taxonomy of aphids and Thysanoptera. Proc. Inter. Symp., Smolenice, Czechoslovakia. The Hague: SPB Academic Publishing.
WÖHRMANN, K., H.A. EGGERS-SCHUMACHER & J. TOMIUK. 1978. Allozyme variation in natural populations of aphids. Proc. XIV Inter. Cong. Genetics, Moscow, Part I, 492p.
WOOL,D., S. BUNTING & H.F. van EMDEN. 1978. Electrophoretic study of genetic variation in British Myzus persicae (Sulz.)(Hemiptera: Aphididae). Biochem. Genet. 16:987-1006.

1

Contribuição número 764 do Departamento de Zoologia, Universidade Federal do Paraná.

Publication Dates

Publication in this collection
28 July 2009
Date of issue
1992

History

Accepted
07 June 1993
Received
02 Nov 1992

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

[1] AVISE, J.C. 1974. Systematic value of electrophoretic data. Syst. Zool. 23:465-481.

[2] BLACKMAN, R.L. 1979. Stability and variation in aphid clonal lineages. Biol. J. Linn. Soc. 11:259-277.

[3] BLACKMAN, R.L. & V.F. EASTOP. 1984. Aphids on the world's crops: an identificaton and information guide. J. Wiley & Sons. Chichester, UK, 466p.

[4] LOXDALE, H.D.; P. CASTAÑERA & CP. BROOKES. 1983. Electrophoretic study of enzymes from cereal aphid populations. 1. Electrophoretic techniques and staining systems for characterizing enzymes from six species of cereal aphids (Hemiptera: Aphididae). Bull. Entomol. Res. 73:645-657.

[5] LOXDALE, H.D.; I.J. TARR; C.P. WEBER; C.P. BROOKES; P.G.N. DIGBY & P. CASTAÑERA. 1985a. Electrophoretic study of enzymes from cereal aphid populations. 3. Spatial and temporal genetic variation of populations of Sitobion avenae (F.) (Hemiptera: Aphididae). Bull. Entomol. Res. 75:121-141.

[6] LOXDALE, H.D.; J.A. RHODES & J.S. FOX. 1985b. Electrophoretic study of enzymes from cereal aphid populations. 4. Detection of hidden genetic variation within populations of the grain aphid Sitobion avenae (F.) (Hemiptera: Aphididae). Theor. Appl. Genet. 70:407-412.

[7] RICHARDS, W.R. 1960. A synopsis of the genus Rhopalosiphum in Canada (Homoptera: Aphididae). Can. Entomol. Suppl. 13:1-51.

[8] SELANDER, R.K. 1976. Genie variation in natural populations, p. 21-45. In: F. J. Ayala (ed.), Molecular Evolution. Sinauer Associates, Massachusetts.

[9] SINGH, S.M. & T.K. CUNNINGHAM. 1981. Morphological and genetic differentiation in aphids (Aphididae). Can. Ent. 113:539-549.

[10] STEINER, W.W.M. 1988. Electrophoretic techniques for the genetic study of aphids, p. 135-143. In: A.K. Minks & P. Harrewijn (eds.), Aphids. Their biology, natural enemies and control. Vol. B. Elsevier Sc. Publ. Amsterdam.

[11] STEINER, W.W.M. & D.J. JOSLYN. 1979. Electrophoretic techniques for the genetic study of mosquitoes. Mosq. News 39:35-54.

[12] STEINER, W.W.M.; D.J. VOEGTLIN; M.E. IRWIN & G. KAMPMEIER. 1985a. Electrophoretic comparison of aphid species: detecting differences based on taxonomic status and host plant. Comp. Biochem. Physiol. 81:295-299.

[13] STEINER, W.W.M.; D.J. VOEGTLIN; M.E. IRWIN. 1985b. Genetic differentiation and its bearing on migration in North American populations of the corn leaf aphid, Rhopalosiphum maidis (Fitch) (Homoptera: Aphididae). Ann. Entomol. Soc. Am. 78:518-525.

[14] TOMIUK, J. & K. WÖHRMANN. 1980. Enzyme variability in populations of aphids. Theor. Appl. Genet. 57:125-127.

[15] ______. 1983. Enzyme polymorphism and taxonomy of aphid species. Z. zool. Syst. Evolutionsforsch. 21:266-274.

[16] VOEGTLIN, D.J., W.W.M. STEINER & M.E. IRWIN. 1987. Searching for the source of the annual spring migrants of Rhopalosiphum maidis (Homoptera: Aphididae) in North America, p. 120-133. In: J. Holman, J. Pelikán, A.F.G. Dixon, & L. Weismann (eds.), Population structure, genetics and taxonomy of aphids and Thysanoptera. Proc. Inter. Symp., Smolenice, Czechoslovakia. The Hague: SPB Academic Publishing.

[17] WÖHRMANN, K., H.A. EGGERS-SCHUMACHER & J. TOMIUK. 1978. Allozyme variation in natural populations of aphids. Proc. XIV Inter. Cong. Genetics, Moscow, Part I, 492p.

[18] WOOL,D., S. BUNTING & H.F. van EMDEN. 1978. Electrophoretic study of genetic variation in British Myzus persicae (Sulz.)(Hemiptera: Aphididae). Biochem. Genet. 16:987-1006.