A red-eye mutant in Nesidiocoris tenuis (Hemiptera: Miridae) is caused by exon skipping due to an indel mutation in the scarlet gene

Authors

Shibata, T., Saeki, K., Saito, C., Uehara, T.

Abstract

Nesidiocoris tenuis is an important zoophytophagous mirid bug used as a biological control agent in agriculture, and breeding efforts based on genomic information aim to increase its utility. Visible eye-color mutants are useful genetic markers because they are easily distinguishable and are therefore widely used in insect genetics and genome editing studies. Here, we investigated the genetic basis of a spontaneous red-eye mutant identi[fi]ed in a laboratory strain of N. tenuis. Classical crossing experiments suggested that the red-eye phenotype is controlled by a single recessive locus. RNA-seq and RNA interference (RNAi) analyses identi[fi]ed scarlet and cinnabar as the primary candidate genes associated with the phenotype. Further genomic analysis revealed a large deletion and insertion within exon 5 of the mutant scarlet allele, potentially causing exon skipping and disrupting transporter structure. The insertion pattern is consistent with a microhomology-mediated break-induced replication (MMBIR)/fork stalling and template switching (FoSTeS)-like event that may have been generated through polymerase {theta}-mediated repair. Together, these [fi]ndings identify the causative mutation underlying the red-eye phenotype and provide a useful visible marker for future functional genetic studies and genome-assisted breeding in N. tenuis.

Preprint server: bioRxiv
The authors list and abstract were imported from bioRxiv on 06 Aug 2026.

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