Dactylopius opuntiae (Cockerell) (Hemiptera: Dactylopiidae) is a new invasive insect in our area, and the most destructive insecton cactus species. It is often referred to as prickly pear cochineal and produces large economic losses all over the globe. Tisresearch investigates the molecular genetics of D. opuntiae. Molecular studies exploring the evolutionary relationships of recentlyestablished and naturally occurring D. opuntiae populations are crucial in determining the routes of entrance. Here, the sequencevariation in the mtCOI, 12S and 18S gene markers from specimens isolated from the Palestinian territories in 2023 were assessed togain greater insight into the variations in DNA within and between Palestinian D. opuntiae populations. Te results showed thepresence of 12, 18, and 12 haplotypes for COI, 12S, and 18S gene markers, respectively. Furthermore, the results indicated lownucleotide diversity (π) (0.00133 for COI, 0.00258 for 12S, and 0.00085 for 18S) and high haplotype diversity (Hd) withinhaplotype phylogenetic trees (0.0.563 for COI, 0.628 for 12S, and 0.425 for 18S). Because the sequences deposited in GenBank arefrom few countries, it was difcult to track the origin of Palestinian sequences with COI, 12S, and 18S sequences deposited inGenBank from few areas of the world. In conclusion, the Palestinian D. opuntiae population exhibited the highest Hd and lowest πbased on investigated gene markers. In addition, negative results for neutral tests indicated that a high number of uncommonmutations found in the populations, which may suggest new colonization events and increase in population number

Title

Psyche: A Journal of Entomology

Publisher

Hindawi limited

Publisher Country

Egypt

Indexing

Thomson Reuters

Impact Factor

1.6

Publication Type

Online only

Volume

2024

Year

2024

Pages

11