Abstract:

By cloning and sequencing the ITS2 (Internal Transcribed Spacer2) of Trichogramma dendrolimi Matsumura and T. ostriniae Pang et Chen, and comparing the homologous sequences from GenBank, we designed the species-specific primers for T. dendrolimi and T. ostriniae with Primer Premier 5.0. The PCR amplification by using the species-specific primers enabled the differentiation of not only adult females but also eggs, juveniles, and adult males, which was not previously possible by using conventional identification methods. This identification system has an advantage over the morphology-based systems in that non-specialists are able to identify individual specimens quickly and cheaply. This genetic diagnosis technique can be used for molecular monitoring of Trichogramma spp.