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Exitianus atratus (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae) a vector of phytoplasmas: morphometry, DNA barcode and phylogenetic relationships for nymphs and adults from Colombia

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Abstract

Integrative taxonomy involving morphometry and molecular analysis is fundamental for the delimitation of taxonomic identity and for the association of the biology, ecology, and epidemiological aspects of the species. This study combines morphometric measurements with DNA barcodes to discriminate between sexes of Exitianus atratus present in the Sabana de Bogotá, Colombia and identify females and nymphs. Phylogenetic relationships of Colombian specimens and other Exitianus species were estimated using COI gene sequences. For adults, seven morphological characters were measured, and geometric morphometric analysis of the right forewing was conducted. The body length of nymphs at different development stages was measured. DNA barcodes for four nymphs of E. atratus from a natural population from Colombia were generated and the phylogenetic relationships for the genus Exitianus were estimated. A DNA Barcode Gap was estimated where the intraspecific (0% to ~ 6%) and interspecific (~ 2.9% to ~ 20.8%) divergence was calculated. DNA barcodes of sampled nymphs matched to E. atratus. Sexual dimorphism was observed and the body length at different nymph stages was different. Variables such as body and forewing length are useful to separate individuals by sex, delimit species and facilitate the taxonomic identification of this species. We observed the barcode gap noncompliance of E. atratus and E. picatus sequences. Furthermore, the phylogenetic analysis estimated three distinct clusters among the Neotropical sequences that suggest three genetically distinct species. However, these clusters do not consistently correspond to single named species. Studies to determine possible explanations to this observation such as mitochondrial introgression that explains the presence of similar haplotypes in morphologically different species or the existence of species complex comprising cryptic species, must be conducted in the Exitianus genus.

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Acknowledgements

We thank the Universidad Militar Nueva Granada for funding the INV-CIAS-2046 and INV-CIAS-3002 projects and Universidad Nacional de Colombia Sede Bogotá for supporting Helena Brochero. Also, we thank the anonymous referees and the editor for their constructive comments.

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  1. Faculty of Basic and Applied Sciences, Universidad Militar Nueva Granada, Cajicá, Colombia

    Andrés Felipe Silva-Castaño & Liliana Franco-Lara

  2. Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá, Colombia

    Helena Brochero

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  1. Andrés Felipe Silva-Castaño
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AFSC, HB and LFL conceived and supervised the research. AFSC conducted the experiments and the data analysis. All authors discussed the results, wrote, and approved the manuscript.

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Silva-Castaño, A.F., Franco-Lara, L. & Brochero, H. Exitianus atratus (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae) a vector of phytoplasmas: morphometry, DNA barcode and phylogenetic relationships for nymphs and adults from Colombia. Int J Trop Insect Sci 43, 495–506 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42690-023-00950-7

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