Comparative cytogenetics and derived phylogenic relationship among Sitophilus grain weevils (Coleoptera, Curculionidae, Dryophthorinae)

By

Silva, Alexandra
Braga, Lucas
Corrêa, Alberto Soares
Holmes, Valerie
Johnston, J. Spencer
Oppert, Brenda
Guedes, Raul Narciso Carvalho
Tavares, Mara

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2018

Original Publication

Comparative cytogenetics : international journal of plant & animal cytogenetics, karyosystematics and molecular systematics

Volume

12

Series / Issue

Issue: 2

Pages

223-245

Subjects

C-banding , evolutionary history , fluorochromes , heterochromatin , Karyotypes , stored products

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

St. Petersburg, Russia [Published] with technical support of Zoological Institute RAS [2007]-

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/CompCytogen.v12i2.26412

 

Abstract

Cytogenetic characteristics and genome size are powerful tools for species characterization and identification of cryptic species, providing critical insights into phylogenetic and evolutionary relationships.SitophilusLinnaeus, 1758 grain weevils can benefit from such tools as key pest species of stored products and also as sources of archeological information on human history and past urban environments. Moreover, the phylogenetic relationship among these weevil species remains controversial and is largely based on single DNA fragment analyses. Therefore, cytogenetic analyses and genome size determinations were performed for fourSitophilusgrain weevil species, namely the granary weevilSitophilusgranarius(Linnaeus, 1758), the tamarind weevilS.linearis(Herbst, 1797), the rice weevilS.oryzae(Linnaeus, 1763), and the maize weevilS.zeamaisMotschulsky, 1855. Both maize and rice weevils exhibited the same chromosome number (2n=22; 10 A + Xyp). In contrast, the granary and tamarind weevils exhibited higher chromosome number (2n=24; 11 A + Xyp and 11 A + neo-XY, respectively). The nuclear DNA content of these species was not proportionally related to either chromosome number or heterochromatin amount. Maize and rice weevils exhibited similar and larger genome sizes (0.730±0.003 pg and 0.786±0.003 pg, respectively), followed by the granary weevil (0.553±0.003 pg), and the tamarind weevil (0.440±0.001 pg). Parsimony phylogenetic analysis of the insect karyotypes indicate thatS.zeamaisandS.oryzaewere phylogenetically closer thanS.granariusandS.linearis, which were more closely related and share a more recent ancestral relationship.