Utilizing a chromosomal-length genome assembly to annotate the Wnt signaling pathway in the Asian citrus psyllid, .

The Asian citrus psyllid, , is an insect vector that transmits Liberibacter asiaticus, the causal agent of the Huanglongbing (HLB), or citrus greening disease. This disease has devastated Florida's citrus industry, and threatens California's industry as well as other citrus producing regions around the world. To find novel solutions to the disease, a better understanding of the vector is needed. The genome has been used to identify and characterize genes involved in Wnt signaling pathways. Wnt signaling is utilized for many important biological processes in metazoans, such as patterning and tissue generation. Curation based on RNA sequencing data and sequence homology confirms 24 Wnt signaling genes within the genome, including homologs for beta-catenin, Frizzled receptors, and seven Wnt-ligands. Through phylogenetic analysis, we classify Wnt ligands as , , , , , , and . The version 3.0 genome with chromosomal length scaffolds reveals a conserved gene cluster with a gene configuration like that in . These findings provide greater insight into the evolutionary history of and Wnt signaling in this important hemipteran vector. Manual annotation was essential for identifying high quality gene models. These gene models can be used to develop molecular systems, such as CRISPR and RNAi, which target and control psyllid populations to manage the spread of HLB. Manual annotation of Wnt signaling pathways was done as part of a collaborative community annotation project.