Abstract
A sequence analysis of the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit II (COII) gene in Russian and Turkish maize- associated populations of Ostrinia nubilalis and a Slovenian population of O. nubilalis probably infesting maize revealed little diver- sity. This lack of diversity may have resulted from bottleneck event(s) when the maize-associated population of O. nubilalis expanded from small population(s) in association with the cultivation of maize in Europe ca. 500 years ago. In the genealogy of COII genes obtained in the present and previous studies, Eurasian samples were substantially differentiated from North American samples. Since the North American population of O. nubilalis came from Europe, our finding suggests that there is geographical dif- ferentiation in European maize-associated O. nubilalis, and that maize-associated populations of O. nubilalis expanded multiple times in Europe. Finally, a phylogenetic analysis of the COII gene did not support that O. nubilalis and O. furnacalis are the closest relatives within the O. furnacalis species group.
Highlights
The European corn borer, Ostrinia nubilalis (Hübner), is one of the most serious pests of maize plants in the northern hemisphere (Showers, 1993)
In terms of the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit II (COII) gene, the Russian and Turkish populations of maize-associated O. nubilalis showed a low level of polymorphism
This is consistent with previous findings on mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of maizeassociated O. nubilalis in France, Hungary, and Egypt: little polymorphism was found (Martel et al, 2003; Keszthelyi & Ács 2005)
Summary
The European corn borer, Ostrinia nubilalis (Hübner), is one of the most serious pests of maize plants in the northern hemisphere (Showers, 1993). The mugwort-associated species infests mostly mugwort and hop, while the maize-associated species infests mostly maize, and occasionally other plants such as sunflower, cocklebur, bird pepper, and sorghum (Leniaud et al, 2006). These two host-differentiated species are genetically differentiated from each other (Bourguet et al, 2000; Martel et al, 2003; Leniaud et al, 2006), and show assortative mating in the field and in cages (Malausa et al, 2005; Bethenod et al, 2005). Frolov et al (2007) argue that the mugwort/hop/hemp-associated O. nubilalis, O. narynensis and O. scapulalis in Europe, and O. orientalis in the Far East represent a biological species, but this argument is not yet unanimously accepted
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