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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Gainesville, Florida » Center for Medical, Agricultural and Veterinary Entomology » Imported Fire Ant and Household Insects Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #234715
Title: Characterization of 24 microsatellite markers in eleven species of fire ants in the genus Solenopsis (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

Author
item Ascunce, Marina
item BOUWMA, ANDREW - USDA/ARS-UNIVER. OF FLORI
item Shoemaker, David

Submitted to: Molecular Ecology Resources
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/26/2009
Publication Date: 4/9/2009
Citation: Ascunce, M.S., Bouwma, A.M., Shoemaker, D.D. 2009. Characterization of 24 microsatellite markers in eleven species of fire ants in the genus Solenopsis (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Molecular Ecology Resources. Available: http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/fulltext/122313880/HTMLSTART.

Interpretive Summary: The parasitic fire ant Solenopsis daguerrei infests colonies of several mound-building fire ant species of economic importance. Scientists at the Center for Medical, Agricultural, and Veterinary Entomology, USDA-ARS, Gainesville, Florida and a scientist from the University of Florida developed 24 new microsatellite markers for this parasitic ant. These markers will be useful for studying the mating biology and gene flow patterns of these ants, which currently are poorly understood. Most genetic markers also amplified successfully in other fire ant species and thus will be useful for a range of population and evolutionary genetic studies in this diverse ant group.

Technical Abstract: The inquiline social parasite ant Solenopsis daguerrei infests colonies of several mound-building fire ant species within the S. saevissima species-group. Twenty-four microsatellite markers were isolated from a repeat-enriched genomic library of S. daguerrei. Eleven loci were polymorphic in the inquiline ant, with two to six alleles were observed and expected heterozygosities ranged from 0.0370 to 0.8511 among loci. Most microsatellite markers amplified successfully in the eleven Solenopsis species tested and thus will be useful for a range of population and evolutionary genetic studies in this diverse ant group.