Assessment of Geographic and Host-Associated Population Variations of the Carob Moth,Ectomyelois ceratoniae, on Pomegranate, Fig, Pistachio and Walnut, Using AFLP Markers

Abstract

The carob moth, Ectomyelois ceratoniae (Zeller 1839) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) is the most important pest of pomegranate, Punica granatum L. (Myrtales: Ponicaceae), in Iran. In this study, 6 amplified fragment length polymorphism primer combinations were used to survey the genetic structure of the geographic and putative host-associated populations of this pest in Iran. An AMOVA was performed on test populations. Pairwise differences, Mantel test, multidimensional analysis, cluster analysis and migration rate were calculated for 5 geographic populations of E. ceratoniae sharing the same host, pomegranate. In another part of the study, 3 comparisons were performed on pairwise populations that were collected on different hosts (pomegranate, fig, pistachio and walnut) in same geographic regions. The results showed high within population variation (85.51% of total variation), however geographic populations differed significantly. The Mantel test did not show correlations between genetic and geographic distances. The probable factors that affect genetic distances are discussed. Multidimensional scaling analysis, migration rate and cluster analysis on geographic populations showed that the Arsanjan population was the most different from the others while the Saveh population was more similar to the Sabzevar population. The comparisons didn't show any host fidelity in test populations. It seems that the ability of E. ceratoniae to broaden its host range with no fidelity to hosts can decrease the efficiency of common control methods that are used on pomegranate. The results of this study suggest that in spite of the effects of geographic barriers, high within-population genetic variation, migration rate and gene flow can provide the opportunity for emerging new phenotypes or behaviors in pest populations, such as broadening host range, changing egg lying places, or changing over-wintering sites to adapt to difficult conditions such as those caused by intensive control methods.

Walnut: past and future of genetic improvement

“…juglandis from different countries were characterized. AFLPs were also used to examine variation in populations of host-associated carob moth (Ectomyelois ceratoniae) on pomegranate, pistachio, and walnut in Iran (Mozaffarian et al 2008). In addition, AFLPs were used in determining that the genetic diversity is higher in homogamous than in dichogamous genotypes, due to a higher level of heterozygosity (Sütyemez 2006).…”

Effect of some diets on demographic parameters of Ectomyelois ceratoniae (Zeller) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) in vitro

“…There are different reports concerning the rearing of carob moths on diets such as: soy flour (Gothilf 1969), almond (Gothilf 1984), cracked shell (Navarro et al 1986), pomegranate (Ghavami 2002), sweet corn, and almond (Hung et al 2003), pistachio, pomegranate, fig, and walnut (Mozaffarian et al 2008), pistachio (Barkhordar and Goldansaz 2006), wheat bran, sucrose, yeast, lysine, glycerin (Mediouni and Dhouibi 2007), and wheat flour, honey, glycerin, yeast, and water (Zolfagharieh et al 2009).…”

Variation among banana weevil Cosmopolites sordidus (Germar) populations in Uganda as revealed by AFLP markers and corm damage differences

“…Results from molecular analysis demonstrated that genetic diversity among banana weevil populations collected from the different regions was not significantly diverse while within-population variation was substantial. Very high within-population variation and insignificant among-population variation in insects were also reported in [16,17] using AFLP markers. Analysis of molecular variance indicated that the genetic differences among groups were not significant; P = 0.897 for the 22 populations studied and P = 0.894 when they are grouped into five regions.…”