Population variation of Polyphagotarsonemus latus (Banks) in Baghdad province, central Iraq

The broad mite, Polyphagotarsonemus latus (Banks), is an important worldwide pest of many agricultural crops such as potato, tomato, eggplant, and pepper. Severe annual yield reductions of potato and other crops due to P. latus infestations occur globally. Mite infestation causes damage to leaf edges, which curl as result of heavy infestation. The foliage may also become rigid, bronze, or silver in appearance. Polyphagotarsonemus latus was recorded in Iraq in 1997, where the only effective method to reduce the mite population is the use of pesticides. Elucidating the genetic structure of P. latus populations is important since it is one of the keystones of mite management. This study examined the genetic structure of P. latus in Baghdad based on cytochrome oxidase I (COI) polymorphisms. Results showed that P. latus populations collected from potatoes and tomatoes at the north, south, east, and west of Baghdad province have ten lineages, five on each plant species. Since this is the first study of population genetic structure of P. latus, the results will facilitate further investigations of P. latus populations and might be one of the cornerstones of using technology such as RNAi and CRISPR to efficiently control P. latus populations.