Abstract
Genetic differentiation, genetic exchange, and influence of natural geographic barrier on the genetic structure of 20 geo-populations of Odontotermes formosanus sampled from different regions in Anhui province, China were detected using ISSR. Seventy-nine polymorphic loci were detected with nine ISSR primers, and the percentage of polymorphic bands was 87.78%. The average number of alleles per locus was 1.8778 ± 0.3294, and the effective number of alleles was 1.4741 ± 0.3438. The Nei′s gene diversity and Shannon information index were 0.2832 ± 0.1696 and 0.4307 ± 0.2274, respectively. All the populations were divided into two groups through UPGMA clustering analysis based on Nei’s genetic distance. One group comprised geo-populations A, C, and J, and the other group consisted of the remaining clusters. Mantel test results revealed no significant correlation between genetic similarity and geographical distance, as well as between elevation. High levels of genetic diversity, genetic mutation, and genetic differentiation were also detected among the geo-populations of O. formosanus. This study revealed the gene flow and possible migration paths of O. formosanus, which are necessary for continuous monitoring and prevention of this species.
Highlights
Odontotermes formosanus (Termitidae, Macrotermitinae), a soil-dwelling termite, is mainly distributed in the Southern provinces along the Yellow and Yangtze Rivers in China (Mühlemann et al, 1995)
The objects of this study were all O. formosanus, while inter-species termites from Odontotermes, Reticultitermes and Coptotermes were analyzed with high polymorphic loci
Twenty populations investigated here are distributed in those natural areas, including Jianghuai hilly area, Dabie mountain area, plains along the Yangtze River, and mountainous areas of South Anhui, which generally cover the whole Anhui Province
Summary
Odontotermes formosanus (Termitidae, Macrotermitinae), a soil-dwelling termite, is mainly distributed in the Southern provinces along the Yellow and Yangtze Rivers in China (Mühlemann et al, 1995). O. formosanus promotes balance in the agroecosystem and biomass degradation in forest systems (Black & Okwakol, 1997), this species is an important pest which can damage many garden trees, plantations and dikes with high economic losses (Huang et al, 2000; Huang et al, 2006; Ge et al, 2008; Appel et al, 2012). As such a most destructive pest, O. formosanus are usually controlled and treated in urban areas by chemical pesticide in time (Huang et al, 2006). The relationship between genetic similarity and the distances of geographic locations has been pointed out when focused on
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