chromatograms of the sequencing

Description

The stinkbug Euschistus heros has several cultivated host species and causes significant damage to crop yields. Several outbreaks and resistant populations have been reported, posing a threat to Brazil economy and food safety. Population genetic studies provide valuable information on insect ecology, which is essential for planning better pest management and monitoring strategies. The combination of population genetic data with large scale control efficiency data may yield information useful for planning resistance monitoring programs. We measured population genetic diversity and analyzed large-scale survey data on control efficiency throughout several locations in Brazil. Our results confirmed that the genetic structure of E. heros populations are organized in two distinct lineages. The control efficiency data shows a significant difference between control efficiency at states on the central and southern regions of Brazil. The combination of these results represented evidence that the genetic structure of E. heros had influence on control efficiency, which in turn yielded two new hypotheses. First, northern and southern lineages have adaptative traits that confer different degrees of insecticide tolerance. Second, the central Brazilian states are positioned in the highly genetically diverse and intensively cultivated admixture zone between northern and southern lineages, resulting in a hotspot for resistant alleles selection. The results described here prompted us to make two recommendations for pest management: continuous monitoring of E. heros at the admixture zone through large-scale control efficiency surveys and regionalizing the dose recommendations of insecticides for more efficient results of pest management programs.

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