Pest Management Science (2013) 69, 938-948

Yizhou Chen, Flavie Vanlerberghe-Masutti, Lewis J. Wilson, Idris Barchia, Martin O. McLoon, Tanya Smith and Grant A. Herron (2013)
Evidence of superclones in Australian cotton aphid Aphis gossypii Glover (Aphididae: Hemiptera)
Pest Management Science 69 (8), 938-948
Abstract:
Background
Aphis gossypii is an important pest of cotton that has developed resistance to many chemicals used for its control. Any lack of understanding of its genetic structure, resistance status and host plant specialisation hampers effective management.
Results
Eight microsatellite markers were genotyped for a collection of Australian A. gossypii field isolates from 55 plant species from major Australian cotton-producing regions. The aphid's pirimicarb resistance status linked to the ACE1 (acetylcholinesterase) S431F mutation was determined by PCR-RFLP. Overall, the genetic diversity was low and there were only 13 multilocus genotype (MLG) groups found in a total of 936 aphids, suggesting asexual reproduction. Three MLGs (Aust-01, Aust-02 and Aust-04) represented 78% of all aphids tested. MLGs Aust-01 (41%) and Aust-02 (18%) were linked to the ACE1 S431F mutation and found on cotton and a range of hosts. Aust-04 (19%) hosted mainly on cotton (but also Asteraceae and Malvaceae) was predominantly susceptible to pirimicarb. Given their abundance and widespread occurrence, these three clones were considered to be superclones.
Conclusion
The study demonstrated that any strategy to control A. gossypii and manage pirimicarb resistance should target A. gossypii strains of all MLG types residing on any plant species and not just cotton.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)
Link to article at publishers website
Database assignments for author(s): Grant A. Herron, Lewis J. Wilson

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
molecular biology - genes
general biology - morphology - evolution

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Aphis gossypii	Cotton (Gossypium)