Two species of parasitic wasp, Venturia canescens and Leptomastix dactylopii, were killed and preserved by various methods used for Hymenoptera and in mass-collecting devices. Total genomic DNA was subsequently extracted and a 524 bp fragment of the mitochondrial 16S ribosomal RNA gene amplified by PCR. Results for these techniques were compared with that for fresh material and museum specimens. Material from -80 degrees C, 100% ethanol, air-drying in a desiccator, and critical-point dried from alcohol all yielded good results after short and long-term storage, as did specimens from ethylene glycol but not formalin (the latter two being commonly used in pitfall and flight intercept traps). Specimens killed in ethyl acetate vapour and air-dried yielded very degraded DNA which did not successfully PCR. The use of this killing agent is a likely reason for previous reports of inconsistent results obtained from museum specimens, and the now widespread use of critical-point drying of wasps and other insects from alcohol is advocated as a potential source of DNA from rare taxa.

Phylogenetic relationships among the apocritan wasps were investigated using comparative sequence data from the mitochondrial 16S rRNA gene. The gene fragment contained three length polymorphic regions. Relationships that were not sensitive to the alignment procedure are discussed, but should be considered as preliminary only. Maximum parsimony analysis recovered the Evaniomorpha (sensu Rasnitsyn, 1988) as a monophyletic group, with the pattern of relationships Ceraphronoidea + (Evanioidea + [Megalyroidea + Trigonalyoidea]). The Proctotrupomorpha (sensu Rasnitsyn, 1988) were also recovered as a monophyletic group, while the Proctotrupoidea were recovered as paraphyletic. The Proctotrupoidea were only monophyletic if the Platygastroidea and Chalcidoidea were included (i.e. Proctotrupomorpha). Relationships of the Proctotrupomorpha that were supported by this analysis included Diapriidae + (Platygastroidea + Chalcidoidea), and the Vanhorniidae falling inside the Proctotrupidae. However, resolution of other relationships within the Proctotrupomorpha was less reliable, as indicated by low decay indices and low bootstrap proportions. Similarly, the placement of the Cynipoidea relative to the other apocritan lineages was also not recovered confidently.

Mango (Mangifera indica) is an economically and nutritionally important tropical/subtropical tree fruit crop. Most of the current commercial cultivars are selections rather than the products of breeding programs. To improve the efficiency of mango breeding, molecular markers have been used to create a consensus genetic map that identifies all 20 linkage groups in seven mapping populations. Polyembryony is an important mango trait, used for clonal propagation of cultivars and rootstocks. In polyembryonic mango cultivars, in addition to a zygotic embryo, several apomictic embryos develop from maternal tissue surrounding the fertilized egg cell. This trait has been associated with linkage group 8 in our consensus genetic map and has been validated in two of the seven mapping populations. In addition, we have observed a significant association between trait and single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers for the vegetative trait of branch habit and the fruit traits of bloom, ground skin color, blush intensity, beak shape, and pulp color.

We describe the isolation and initial characterization of hemomucin, a novel Drosophila surface mucin that is likely to be involved in the induction of antibacterial effector molecules after binding a snail lectin (Helix pomatia A hemagglutinin). Two proteins of 100 and 220 kDa were purified from the membrane fraction of a Drosophila blood cell line using lectin columns. The two proteins are products of the same gene, as demonstrated by peptide sequencing. The corresponding cDNAs code for a product that contains an amino-terminal putative transmembrane domain, a domain related to the plant enzyme strictosidine synthase, and a mucin-like domain in the carboxyl-terminal part of the protein. The gene is expressed throughout development. In adult flies, high expression is found in hemocytes, in specialized regions of the gut, and in the ovary, where the protein is deposited onto the egg surface. In the gut, the mucin co-localizes with the peritrophic membrane. The cytogenetic location of the gene is on the third chromosome in the region 97F-98A.

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