Taxonomia integrativa de Telenomus sp. n. (Hymenoptera: Scelionidae), parasitoide de Rupela albinella (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) em cultivo de arroz

Abstract

ln lhe Baixada Maranhense region, Rupela albinella Cramer, 1781 (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) has become a problem in irrigated rice fields. Biological control slands out as an imporlanl alternativo for the conlrol of insetcs-pests in rice and, in this context, egg parasitoids are considered imporlant agents of natural mortality in lhe environment. In R. albinella egg masses in Maranhão, Telenomus sp. n. (Hymcnoptera: Scclionidae) was First rcporlcd in rice. In this sense, The objective of the research was to confirm the species with the assistance of integrative taxonomy, as well as verify the genclic diversily of Telenomus sp. n. from eggs of R. albinella. The rescarch was conducted in lhe 2019/2020 crop, between January and April in a commercial irrigated rice crop. The collection of egg masses of R. albinella look placc along the rice planting rows. and later placed in plaslic pots. In the laboratory, samples were observed daily to verify the mcrgence of parasitoids and after death, they were preserved in 96% alcohol. Subsequently, about 400 individuais of Telenomus sp. n. were sent to llie Laboratory of Molecular Ecology of Arthropods of the Faculty of Agriculture “Luiz de Queiroz”, University of São Paulo, Piracicaba, São Paulo for DNA sequencing. To extract total genomic DNA, a male and a female of Telenomus sp. n. that were subjected to amplification by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using specific primers and sequencing of the COI gene, from a fragment of the mitochondrial gene Cytoclirome C Oxidase subunit I (COI), corresponding to the barcode region. Two sequences of approximately 570 bp were produced for the barcoding region of the two individuais with identical barcode region, therefore, there was no genetic diversity. When the sequences were submitted to the Barcorde of Life Systems and BLASTn database, homology of approximately 91% was obtained with sequences named Telenomus sp. collected in Canada. Therefore, this study, in addition to providing molecular data, may serve as a useful tool for analyzing the distinction between species of the genus Tclcnomus, since few reports of parasitoids from R. albinella eggs have been identified in Brazil.