Abstract: 【Aim】 Phenacoccus solenopsis Tinsley is one of the most important quarantine pests in China. Simple sequence repeats (SSRs) are very useful molecular markers in genetic studies such as genetic mapping, physical mapping, marker-assisted breeding and species identification, gene location, genetic diversity, classification and evolution of plants and animals, etc. Screening SSR primers will provide an important resource for marker-assisted investigation in genetic diversity, phylogenetic analysis and biological invasion of P. solenopsis. 【Methods】 A high-throughput method was used to develop the SSR genetic markers from the 28 120 unigenes of the transcriptome in the mealybug P. solenopsis. 【Results】 In total, 1 781 SSR genetic markers were developed from the previously constructed transcriptome database. The majority of them contained mono- and trinucleotide motifs (89.44% and 7.52%, respectively), of which A/T was the most abundant mononucleotide motif (87.42%). Based on the identified SSRs, 1 228 pairs of primer sets were designed from 481 unigenes by the Primer 3 program. 【Conclusion】 Our study shows that it is feasible to develop SSR markers by using P. solenopsis transcriptome, and the primers developed in this study provide the foundation for the analysis of genetic diversity, evolutionary biology, and invasion biology of P. solenopsis.

Key words: Phenacoccus solenopsis, transcriptome, simple sequence repeats, microsatellite DNA, primer