Abstract
The bean bug (Riptortus pedestris) causes great economic losses of
soybeans by piercing and sucking pods and seeds. Although R. pedestris
has become the focus of numerous studies associated with insect–microbe
interactions, plant–insect interactions, and pesticide resistance, a
lack of genomic resources has limited deeper insights. In this study, we
report the first R. pedestris genome at the chromosomal level using
PacBio, Illumina, and Hi-C technologies. The assembled genome was 1.193
Gb in size with a contig N50 of 13.97 Mb. More than 95.7% of the total
genome bases were successfully anchored to 6 unique chromosomes, with
the scaffold N50 reaching 181.34 Mb. Genome resequencing of male and
female individuals and chromosomic staining demonstrated that the sex
chromosome system of R. pedestris is XO, and the shortest chromosome is
the X chromosome. In total, 21,562 protein-coding genes were predicted,
21,320 of which were validated as being expressed in different tissues
or different developmental stages. Evolutionary analysis demonstrated
that R. pedestris and Oncopeltus fasciatus formed a sister group and
split ∼35 million years ago. Additionally, a 5.04 Mb complete genome of
symbiotic Serratia marcescens Rip1 was assembled, and the virulence
factors that account for successful colonization in the host midgut were
identified. The high-quality R. pedestris genome provides a valuable
resource for further research, as well as for the pest management of bug
pests.