{
  "abstract": "The vine mealybug, Planococcus ficus, is a globally invasive pest of grapevine and a vector of leaf roll viruses. Like other mealybugs, it reproduces through paternal-genome elimination, a sex-determination system that operates without sex chromosomes and is associated with extreme sexual dimorphism. To characterize genome organization and sex-biased expression in this species, we generated a long-read reference genome spanning 369 Mb with 23,489 annotated genes and macrosynteny conserved with the citrus mealybug, Planococcus citri. Resequencing of 4 California field individuals provided the first genome-wide baseline of nucleotide diversity for P. ficus and 132 cross-validated microsatellite markers for population monitoring. Phloem feeders secrete proteins that mediate host interaction; of 2,129 predicted secreted proteins in P. ficus, a conserved core is shared with P. citri, and each carries a lineage-specific set. Comparing adult male and female transcriptomes, we found sex-biased expression to be pervasive and skewed toward females: 41% of tested genes differed between the sexes, with female-biased genes both more numerous and showing larger fold changes. These female-biased genes were not randomly distributed but concentrated in discrete blocks of coordinately expressed, tandemly duplicated gene families, a pattern not previously described in a mealybug. Male- and female-biased secreted proteins also differed in origin, with male-biased proteins drawn from a conserved repertoire shared with P. citri and female-biased proteins spanning a more lineage-specific pool. Together, these results reveal a female-skewed, spatially clustered architecture of sex-biased expression in a mealybug that lacks sex chromosomes, and provide genomic resources for managing an invasive vineyard pest.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 7,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Dario Cantu",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-4858-1508"
    },
    {
      "name": "Rosa Figueroa-Balderas",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-3321-1376"
    },
    {
      "name": "Mark Sisterson"
    },
    {
      "name": "Andrea Minio"
    },
    {
      "name": "Noé Cochetel",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-3395-9536"
    },
    {
      "name": "Rachel Naegele"
    },
    {
      "name": "Lindsey Burbank"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/5hc8wn8af972h.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1093/g3journal/jkag235",
  "fulltext_url": "https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13732444/",
  "id": "5hc8wn8af972h",
  "issns": [
    "2160-1836"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://doi.org/10.1093/g3journal/jkag235",
  "language": "en",
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "heading",
      "AcademicSubjects/SCI01140"
    ],
    [
      "heading",
      "AcademicSubjects/SCI01180"
    ],
    [
      "heading",
      "Featured"
    ],
    [
      "heading",
      "Investigation"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "1109|Research on scale insects"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7203830711",
  "pdf_url": null,
  "pmcid": "PMC13732444",
  "pmid": "42623564",
  "published": "2026-08-20",
  "publisher": "Oxford University Press",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/5hc8wn8af972h.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-08T12:22:25Z",
      "native_id": "PMC13732444",
      "source": "pmc",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1093/g3journal/jkag235"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biology",
      "origin": "openalex:1109|Research on scale insects",
      "subfield": "zoology-behaviour"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Genomic compartmentalization of pervasive sex-biased gene expression in the vine mealybug Planococcus ficus",
  "title_text": "Genomic compartmentalization of pervasive sex-biased gene expression in the vine mealybug Planococcus ficus",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-08T12:22:25Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/5hc8wn8af972h",
  "venue": "G3: Genes | Genomes | Genetics",
  "versions": []
}