We present a genome assembly from an individual male Oxytorus armatus (an ichneumonid wasp; Arthropoda; Insecta; Hymenoptera; Ichneumonidae). The genome sequence is 367.8 megabases in span. Most of the assembly is scaffolded into 13 chromosomal pseudomolecules. The mitochondrial genome has also been assembled and is 56.22 kilobases in length.

We present a genome assembly from an individual male Exephanes ischioxanthus (an ichneumonid wasp; Arthropoda; Insecta; Hymenoptera; Ichneumonidae). The genome sequence is 284.0 megabases in span. Most of the assembly is scaffolded into 12 chromosomal pseudomolecules. The mitochondrial genome has also been assembled and is 19.43 kilobases in length.

BACKGROUND: Maternally-inherited symbionts can induce pre-mating and/or post-mating reproductive isolation between sympatric host lineages, and speciation, by modifying host reproductive phenotypes. The large parasitoid wasp genus Cotesia (Braconidae) includes a diversity of cryptic species, each specialized in parasitizing one to few related Lepidoptera host species. Here, we characterized the infection status of an assemblage of 21 Cotesia species from 15 countries by several microbial symbionts, as a first step toward investigating whether symbionts may provide a barrier to gene flow between these parasitoid host lineages.
RESULTS: The symbiotic microbes Arsenophonus, Cardinium, Microsporidium and Spiroplasma were not detected in the Cotesia wasps. However, the endosymbiotic bacterium Wolbachia was present in at least eight Cotesia species, and hence we concentrated on it upon screening additional DNA extracts and SRAs from NCBI. Some of the closely related Cotesia species carry similar Wolbachia strains, but most Wolbachia strains showed patterns of horizontal transfer between phylogenetically distant host lineages.
CONCLUSIONS: The lack of co-phylogenetic signal between Wolbachia and Cotesia suggests that the symbiont and hosts have not coevolved to an extent that would drive species divergence between the Cotesia host lineages. However, as the most common facultative symbiont of Cotesia species, Wolbachia may still function as a key-player in the biology of the parasitoid wasps. Its precise role in the evolution of this complex clade of cryptic species remains to be experimentally investigated.

Flower colour polymorphisms are uncommon but widespread among angiosperms and can be maintained by a variety of balancing selection mechanisms. Anemone palmata is mostly yellow-flowered, but white-flowered plants coexist in some populations. We analysed the distribution of colour morphs of A. palmata across its range. We also characterised their colours and compared their vegetative and sexual reproductive traits, pollinator attention and fitness. The range of A. palmata is limited to the Western Mediterranean, while white-flowered plants are restricted to Portugal and SW Spain, where they occur at low proportions. Yellow flowers have a characteristic UV pattern, with a UV-absorbing centre and UV-reflecting periphery, which is absent in the white morph. Colour features of both morphs were highly delineated, making it easy for pollinators to distinguish them. Both morphs were protogynous, with the same duration of sexual stages, and the main floral traits related to pollinator attraction, apart from flower colour, were similar. Hymenoptera and Diptera were the main pollinators, showing preference for the yellow morph, clear partitioning of pollinator groups between the two colour morphs and a marked constancy to flower colour during foraging. Both morphs combined clonal propagation with sexual reproduction, but sexual reproductive potential was lower in white-flowered plants. Finally, female fitness was higher in the yellow morph. Pollinator partitioning and colour constancy could maintain this polymorphism, despite the lower visitation rate and fitness of white-flowered plants, which could facilitate their clonal propagation.

UNASSIGNED: Background. Ultra-rush venom immunotherapy protocols have shown to be a safe and effective approach to prevent the occurrence of systemic reactions after hymenoptera stings. The aim was to describe our experience with two ultra-rush protocols - a five-step with 1 µg starting dose and a six-step with 0.1 µg starting dose, as well as to compare their safety profile. Methods. This is a retrospective study of all the patients who underwent VIT with honey bee or wasp venom between January 2008 and December 2021, in our department. Results. A total of 110 patients was included, with 109 patients (99%) completing the protocol. A total of 63 (57%) patients had no local or systemic reactions. Most systemic reactions occurred with 20 µg or higher doses (24, 83%). There were no documented grade IV systemic reactions (Mueller grading). No differences were found in local or systemic reactions regarding sex, atopy, β-blocker medication, the severity of the index reaction, ID test positivity, levels of total IgE, specific IgE and tryptase (all p > 0.05). Younger age, treatment with bee VIT or being a beekeeper were associated with more systemic reactions (p = 0.035, 0.006 and 0.047, respectively). No statistical differences in the number of local and systemic reactions were found when comparing both protocols (p = 1.000). Conclusions. Ultra-rush protocols are safe and effective, but systemic reactions are to be expected, especially with honeybee. Our data supports that ACE inhibitors do not compromise safety. Beginning with 1 µg is safe and can save time and resources.

We present a genome assembly from an individual male Pemphredon lugubris (the Mournful Wasp; Arthropoda; Insecta; Hymenoptera; Crabronidae). The genome sequence is 328.1 megabases in span. Most of the assembly is scaffolded into 5 chromosomal pseudomolecules. The mitochondrial genome has also been assembled and is 15.88 kilobases in length. Gene annotation of this assembly on Ensembl identified 10,335 protein coding genes.

Sugar consumption increases the fecundity and longevity in many species of parasitic wasps (parasitoids) but whether these insects use sugars to synthesize significant amounts of fatty acids and storage fat de novo (lipogenesis) is discussed controversially. It has long been assumed that parasitic wasps lost this ability during evolution, mainly because in several species wasps with ad libitum access to sugar did not increase teneral lipid levels. Recent studies demonstrated that many species are nonetheless capable of synthesizing fatty acids de novo from glucose. It is unclear, however, whether also other sugars are used for fatty acid biosynthesis and whether an increase of sugar concentration to levels occurring in natural sugar sources translates into higher fatty acid production. Furthermore, it has been suggested that fatty acid production in parasitoids is negligible compared to species increasing teneral fat reserves such as Drosophila melanogaster. Here we show by stable isotope labeling experiments that females of Nasonia vitripennis convert D-glucose, D-fructose, sucrose, and α,α-trehalose, major sugars consumed by adult parasitoids in nature, equally well to palmitic, stearic, oleic, and linoleic acid. Lipogenesis from D-galactose occurs as well albeit to a lesser extent. Sugar concentration is crucial for lipogenic activity, and almost 80% of de novo synthesized fatty acids were incorporated into storage fat (triacylglycerides). Comparison of fatty acid biosynthesis within a 48-h feeding period with D. melanogaster revealed that N. vitripennis produced approximately half as many fatty acids per body mass unit. Both species fed equal amounts of the glucose offered. We conclude that lipogenesis is far from negligible in N. vitripennis and plays an important role for the energy balance when teneral lipid reserves deplete.

We present a genome assembly from an individual female Macrophya alboannulata (sawfly; Arthropoda; Insecta; Hymenoptera; Tenthredinidae). The genome sequence is 245.2 megabases in span. Most of the assembly is scaffolded into 8 chromosomal pseudomolecules. The mitochondrial genome has also been assembled and is 23.17 kilobases in length. Gene annotation of this assembly on Ensembl identified 24,359 protein coding genes.

Diomorus aiolomorphi Kamijo (Hymenoptera: Torymidae) is an inquiline of gall maker Aiolomorphus rhopaloides Walker (Hymenoptera: Eurytomidae). They are of significant economic significance and predominantly inhabit bamboo forest. So far, only four scaffold-level genomes have been published for the family Torymidae. In this study, we present a high-quality genome assembly of D. aiolomorphi at the chromosome level, achieved through the integration of Nanopore (ONT) long-read, Illumina pair-end DNA short-read, and High-through Chromosome Conformation Capture (Hi-C) sequencing methods. The final assembly was 1,084.56 Mb in genome size, with 1,083.41 Mb (99.89%) assigned to five pseudochromosomes. The scaffold N50 length reached 224.87 Mb, and the complete Benchmarking Universal Single-Copy Orthologs (BUSCO) score was 97.3%. The genome contained 762.12 Mb of repetitive elements, accounting for 70.27% of the total genome size. A total of 18,011 protein-coding genes were predicted, with 17,829 genes being functionally annotated. The high-quality genome assembly of D. aiolomorphi presented in this study will serve as a valuable genomic resource for future research on parasitoid wasps. The results of this study may also contribute to the development of biological control strategies for pest management in bamboo forests, enhancing ecological balance and economic sustainability.

We present a genome assembly from an individual female Ectemnius lituratus (a digger wasp; Arthropoda; Insecta; Hymenoptera; Crabronidae). The genome sequence is 235.1 megabases in span. Most of the assembly is scaffolded into 13 chromosomal pseudomolecules. The mitochondrial genome has also been assembled and is 29.67 kilobases in length. Gene annotation of this assembly on Ensembl identified 9,724 protein coding genes.