Abstract
Parasitoid wasps are important biological control resources, yet their genetic manipulation has long been constrained by small body size and parasitization behavior, limiting their broader application in pest management. Here we report a chromosome-level genome assembly of the ectoparasitoid Gregopimpla kuwanae (322.87 Mb, 24 chromosomes), a relatively large species that parasitizes various lepidopteran pests. In the first part of this study, we established a foundational genomic resource and experimental platform by producing a high-quality genome and demonstrating the feasibility of functional genetics: RNA interference successfully silenced the cinnabar gene, while CRISPR/Cas9 editing generated vestigial knockout mutants, thus establishing G. kuwanae as a tractable system for gene manipulation. In the second part, we applied comparative genomics to identify lineage-specific gene-family expansions linked to parasitism, including venom-related genes, immune suppression factors, and detoxification enzymes (cytochrome P450s and UDP-glucosyltransferases), and we identified eight HGT candidates; one candidate (JSFChr12G01362) showed pre-feeding expression in females and caused increased adult mortality upon RNAi. Our study provides both the means and the candidates for mechanistic dissection of parasitoid adaptations, laying a foundation for the broader application of parasitoid wasps in sustainable biocontrol programs.
Data availability
The genome assembly and all raw sequencing data generated in this study have been deposited in the NCBI under BioProject accession PRJNA1242975. This includes raw short-read sequencing data (SRX28190072), PacBio HiFi long-read data (SRX28190073), Hi-C data (SRX28190084 and SRX28190095), and RNA-seq data (SRX28190074-SRX28190083, SRX28190085-SRX28190094, SRX28190096-SRX28190111), as well as the final chromosome-level genome assembly of G. kuwanae (GCA_052576135.1). Source data underlying the figures of this manuscript can be found in Supplementary Data 1. All other data supporting the findings of this study are also available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
Code availability
The software and parameters used in this study are described in the Methods section. No specific custom codes or scripts were utilized. Data processing was conducted according to the manuals and protocols provided with the respective software.
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the National Science Foundation of China (32573304 and 32400380), the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province (BK20241861).
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Hao Gao: Conceptualization, Methodology, Investigation, Writing-original draft; Yijiangcheng Li, Yanli Chen: Sample Collection, Experiment, Investigation; Mengying Fang, Shuyu Zhang, Hui Zhang: Sample Collection, Experiment; Jianhao Ding, Dalin Zhu: Investigation, Validation; Anjiang Tang, Sheng Sheng: Funding acquisition, Project administration, Supervision, Writing-review & editing.
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Gao, H., Li, Y., Chen, Y. et al. Genomic landscape and genetic manipulation of an ectoparasitoid wasp, Gregopimpla kuwanae. Commun Biol (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-026-09699-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-026-09699-4
