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ARS Home » Midwest Area » Ames, Iowa » Corn Insects and Crop Genetics Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #181333
Title: ABSENCE OF GENETIC DIVERGENCE BETWEEN WESTERN CORN ROOTWORMS (COLEOPTERA: CHRYSOMELIDAE) RESISTANT AND SUSCEPTIBLE TO CONTROL BY CROP ROTATION

Author
item MILLER, NICHOLAS - INRA (FRANCE)
item Kim, Kyung
item RATCLIFF, SUSAN - UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
item ESTOUP, ARNAUD - CENTRE DE BIOLOGIE-FRANCE
item BOURGUET, DENIS - CENTRE DE BIOLOGIE-FRANCE
item GUILLEMAUD, THOMAS - INRA (FRANCE)

Submitted to: Journal of Economic Entomology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 1/13/2006
Publication Date: 6/1/2006
Citation: Miller, N., Kim, K.S., Ratcliff, S., Estoup, A., Bourguet, D., Guillemaud, T. 2006. Absence of genetic divergence between western corn rootworms (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) resistant and susceptible to control by crop rotation. Journal of Economic Entomology. 99(3):685-690.

Interpretive Summary: The western corn rootworm is a major pest of corn in North America and has recently invaded Europe. Historically, crop rotation has been an effective strategy for avoiding damage by this insect, but a variant has recently evolved that can get around crop rotation and still damage first-year corn. DNA from samples of rootworms from populations in rotation-susceptible and rotation-resistant regions was compared to determine if the two kinds of rootworms are genetically isolated from each other. The results showed that they either mate freely with each other, or that there has not been enough time for the populations to have drifted apart genetically. This work will help guide scientists trying to find an efficient DNA test to distinguish resistant from susceptible beetles. Such a test would help crop consultants and growers make better decisions for preventing rootworm damage in their cornfields.

Technical Abstract: The western corn rootworm, Diabrotica virgifera virgifera, is a major pest of corn in North America and has recently invaded Europe. A behavioral adaptation has allowed the species to circumvent crop rotation as a means of control in part of its range in the United States. Analyses of microsatellite variation in natural populations revealed that resistance was not acquired via hybridization with the northern corn rootworm, Diabrotica barberi. No genetic differentiation was found between rotation resistant and susceptible D. v. virgifera. This indicates that no mating isolation exists between rotation and susceptible populations, or that such an isolation exists but the acquisition of rotation resistance is too recent for the populations to be differentiated. Our results suggest that the genetic variation responsible for rotation resistance may involve a small rather than a large number of genes. The implications for the management of D. v. virgifera in North America and Europe are discussed.