Abstract
The sweetpotato whitefly, Bemisia tabaci (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae), is a pest of many economically important agricultural crops and a vector of plant viruses. Bemisia tabaci harbors facultative endosymbiont species that have been implicated in pest status, including tolerance to insecticides, virus transmission efficiency and tolerance to high-temperatures. The facultative endosymbionts reported in B. tabaci include Arsenophonus, Hamiltonella, Wolbachia, Cardinium, Fritschea and Rickettsia. We collected whitefly populations from weed and crop hosts in south Florida and identified the whitefly species as well as the facultative endosymbionts present in these populations by molecular analysis. In addition, a phylogenetic analysis of whiteflies and their endosymbionts was performed. The only facultative endosymbionts found among the B. tabaci populations collected in Florida were Hamiltonella and Rickettsia. The phylogenetic analysis revealed the low genetic diversity of whiteflies and their endosymbionts. Additionally, the phylogenetic tree clustered Rickettsia from Florida in the R1 genetic group. The results will aid to understand the role of the bacterial endosymbionts in the whitefly host.
Highlights
The whitefly, Bemisia tabaci (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae), is a pest of many agricultural crops and a successful vector of over 300 plant virus species including Begomovirus, Crinivirus, Carlavirus, Torradovirus and Ipomovirus [1,2]
The prevalent facultative endosymbionts pattern observed throughout Florida was Rickettsia in co-infection with Hamiltonella (Figure 2)
Vertical columns represent the different symbionts tested as indicated by the letters at the bottom of each column, and each horizontal column represents one individual tested for the presence of the six facultative endosymbionts
Summary
The whitefly, Bemisia tabaci (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae), is a pest of many agricultural crops and a successful vector of over 300 plant virus species including Begomovirus, Crinivirus, Carlavirus, Torradovirus and Ipomovirus [1,2]. Three species of the B. tabaci complex have been reported: the Middle East-Asia Minor 1 (MEAM1), known as B biotype; the Mediterranean (MED), named as Q biotype; and the indigenous species New World 1 (NW1) or A biotype [9]. Bemisia tabaci MEAM1 is the primary pest of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) in Florida and recent surveys indicate that MED species has been detected on landscape plants in residential areas [10]. Florida is among the main producers of fresh market tomatoes in the United States, with over 27,000 acres harvested in 2018 at a value of $344 million [11]
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