ANALYSIS OF GENETIC DIVERSITY OF DIACHASMIMORPHA LONGICAUDATA (ASHMEAD) IN PUMPKIN FRUIT FLY AND SOLANUM FRUIT FLY USING SSCP OF THE COI GENE
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14456/lsej.2025.22Keywords:
Diachasmimorpha longicaudata, species complex, COI gene, SSCP techniqueAbstract
Diachasmimorpha longicaudata (Ashmead) is an important parasitoid of tephritid fruit flies in Thailand and has been recognized as the species complex comprising at least three sibling species, named as DLA, DLB, and DLBB. These species exhibit distinct host specificity, which may play an important role in driving their genetic differentiation. This research aimed to investigate the genetic diversity of D. longicaudata collected from pumpkin fruit flies and solanum fruit flies using single strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP) analysis of a 265 base pair fragment of the cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene. The results revealed that D. longicaudata from solanum fruit flies exhibited COI-1, COI-2, and COI-3 haplotypes, corresponding to the DLA lineage. Whereas D. longicaudata from pumpkin fruit flies showed four novel haplotypes (COI-8, COI-9, COI-10, and COI-11) which are distinct from the previously reported lineage. Furthermore, nucleotide sequence analysis and a Maximum Likelihood phylogenetic tree demonstrated that the D. longicaudata species complex in Thailand is a monophyletic group with a bootstrap value of 100%. The haplotypes COI-8, COI-9, COI-10, and COI-11 formed a distinct subclade within the D. longicaudata clade and are clearly differentiated from their sibling species. This study demonstrates the effectiveness of integrating SSCP analysis with the COI gene to investigate genetic variation within the D. longicaudata species complex in Thailand. The genetic data obtained provide valuable insights for taxonomic studies, genetic conservation, and the appropriate and sustainable application of this parasitoid species in biological pest control.
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