Annotation of yellow genes in Diaphorina citri, the vector for Huanglongbing disease

Abstract

Huanglongbing (HLB), also known as citrus greening disease, is caused by the bacterium Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus (CLas). It is a serious threat to global citrus production. This bacterium is transmitted by the Asian citrus psyllid, Diaphorina citri (Hemiptera). There are no effective in planta treatments for CLas. Therefore, one strategy is to manage the psyllid population. Manual annotation of the D. citri genome can identify and characterize gene families that could be novel targets for psyllid control. The yellow gene family is an excellent target because yellow genes, which have roles in melanization, are linked to development and immunity. Combined analysis of the genome with RNA-seq datasets, sequence homology, and phylogenetic trees were used to identify and annotate nine yellow genes in the D. citri genome. Manual curation of genes in D. citri provided in-depth analysis of the yellow family among hemipteran insects and provides new targets for molecular control of this psyllid pest. Manual annotation was done as part of a collaborative Citrus Greening community annotation project.