The phylogenetic and evolutionary analyses of detoxification gene families in Aphidinae species

Abstract

Detoxification enzymes play significant roles in the interactions between insects and host plants, wherein detoxification-related genes make great contributions. As herbivorous pests, aphids reproduce rapidly due to parthenogenesis. They are good biological materials for studying the mechanisms that allow insect adaptation to host plants. Insect detoxification gene families are associated with insect adaptation to host plants. The Aphidinae is the largest subfamily in the Aphididae with at least 2483 species in 256 genera in 2 tribes: the Macrosiphini (with 3/4 of the species) and the Aphidini. Most aphid pests on crops and ornamental plants are Aphidinae. Members of the Aphidinae occur in nearly every region of the world. The body shape and colour vary significantly. To research the role that detoxification gene families played in the process of aphid adaptation to host evolution, we analyzed the phylogeny and evolution of these detoxification gene families in Aphidinae. In general, the P450/GST/CCE gene families contract, whereas the ABC/UGT families are conserved in Aphidinae species compared to these families in other herbivorous insects. Genus-specific expansions of P450 CYP4, and GST Delta have occurred in the genus Acyrthosiphon. In addition, the evolutionary rates of five detoxification gene families in the evolution process of Aphidinae are different. The comparison of five detoxification gene families among nine Aphidinae species and the estimated relative evolutionary rates provided herein support an understanding of the interaction between and the co-evolution of Aphidinae and plants.

Detoxification Gene Families at the Genome-Wide Level of Rhus Gall Aphid Schlechtendalia chinensis

“…The fewer detoxification-related genes may be due to the unobvious duplication events of detoxification-related genes. Genes with conserved roles usually have relatively stable copies, while those with diversified functions have higher rates of gain-and-loss with random changing degrees [ 56 ]. The numbers of ABCs of S. chinensis was 55, that was more than other aphids and showed significant genetic expansion.…”

“…It was reported that gene duplications were critical for the evolution of new genes and novel functions and were major forces driving gene family expansion [ 60 ]. For example, CYP genes, often clustering in genomes, were considered as a result of gene duplication events [ 56 ]. We calculated the Ka and Ks values to estimate the evolutionary trend and revealed a functional selection pressure between duplicated gene pairs.…”

Metabolization and sequestration of plant specialized metabolites in insect herbivores: Current and emerging approaches

“…After gene annotation, phylogenetic analyses are performed to analyze the diversification pattern using nucleotide or amino acid sequence alignments. The resulting phylogenetic trees will reveal genes that are conserved and those that have duplicated in a lineage-specific manner, which might be linked to the emergence of an evolutionarily novel function in PSM detoxification and sequestration (e.g., Ahn et al, 2019;Yang et al, 2021;Lin et al, 2022). Gene family evolution can also be analyzed using CAFE (Computational Analysis of gene Family Evolution), a statistical method that estimates gene gains and losses across a species phylogeny based on birth and death models (Bie et al, 2006;Han et al, 2013).…”

Metabolization and Sequestration of Plant Specialized Metabolites in Insect Herbivores: Current and Emerging Approaches

“…After gene annotation, phylogenetic analyses are performed to analyze the diversification pattern using nucleotide or amino acid sequence alignments. The resulting phylogenetic trees will reveal genes that are conserved and those that have duplicated in a lineage-specific manner, which might be linked to the emergence of an evolutionarily novel function in PSM detoxification and sequestration (e.g., Ahn et al, 2019;Yang et al, 2021;Lin et al, 2022). Gene family evolution can also be analyzed using CAFÉ (Computational Analysis of gene Family Evolution), a statistical method that estimates gene gains and losses across a species phylogeny based on birth and death models (Bie et al, 2006;Han et al, 2013).…”