Sequence Analysis of the Cytochrome c Oxidase Subunit I Gene Suggests a High Genetic Proximity between Chelonus insularis and Chelonus sonorensis

摘要

The molecular characterization of three species of the genus Chelonus was conducted for: [Ch. insularis Cresson 1865, Ch. cautus Cresson 1872 and Ch. sonorensis Cameron 1887 (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) - nominal species], parasitoids of the armyworm Spodoptera frugiperda (J.E. Smith) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) collected in maize (Zea mays L.), which are distributed in Durango and in other states of Mexico. The extraction and amplification of DNA was by PCR, as well as the sequencing of a fragment of the cytochrome c oxidase subunit I, to determine the genetic variability within and between individuals of the same species. Genetically, the distances between the species Ch. insularis and Ch. sonorensis, was very small (0.3%), indicating they probably belong to the same lineage (species), while Ch. cautus had a genetic distance from the other species to 17.8%, which indicates great genetic differentiation. These results indicated the genetic variability that exists within and between these species is probably due to evolutionary changes. This was reinforced after Bayesian and maximum-likelihood analyzes that indicate that in the maize region of Durango, Ch. insularis and Ch. sonorensis belong to the same lineage with support in the groups of more than 80%, while Ch. cautus belongs in another cluster.