The Colorado Potato Beetle (L. decemlineata) genome yields insight into the role of transposable elements in pest evolution.

Transposable elements (TEs) can play critical roles in the evolution of genome structure and function, but have yet to be well-characterized in non-model insects. Generally, TEs are expected to facilitate mutation and changes in gene expression, which can underlie variation in phenotypic traits. A number of TE-gene complexes involved in adaptation have been found in Drosophila and several other species. Transposable elements may also play a major in the rapid evolution of insect agricultural pests, such as the Colorado potato beetle, Leptinotarsa decemlineata, a notorious global pest of potatoes and other Solanaceous crops such as tomato and eggplant. Leptinotarsa decemlineata has been widely considered to be successful because of its ability to rapidly adapt to a wide range of host plants, environmental conditions, and insecticidal chemistries. Using the newly sequenced beetle genome through the i5K genomes initiative, we describe transposable elements in the genome of the Colorado Potato Beetle in order to better understand the evolutionary history of the species, its adaptability, and its rapid range expansion. We expected increased TE content in regions associated with stress responses and adaptability. We conducted a bioinformatic analysis of the genome using RepeatModeler and several other programs in order to describe the landscape of TEs in the genome of the beetle. Using data on gene functional groups from the recently annotated Colorado Potato Beetle genome, we found that flanking regions surrounding genes associated with rapid evolution and stress responses are enriched for TE content. This supports the notion that transposable elements have a role to play in the generation of variation and may underlie rapid evolution.

See more of: Ten-Minute Papers, SysEB Section: Genomic Data in Systematics and Evolution
See more of: Ten Minute Paper (TMP) Oral

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