Chromosomal-Level Genome Assembly of a True Bug, Aspongopus chinensis Dallas, 1851 (Hemiptera: Dinidoridae).

The true bug, Aspongopus chinensis Dallas, 1851 (Hemiptera: Dinidoridae), is a fascinating insect with prolonged diapause and medicinal properties but also a notorious pest. However, because of the lack of genomic resources, an in-depth understanding of its biological characteristics is lacking. Here, we report the first genome assembly of A. chinensis anchored to 10 pseudochromosomes, which was achieved by combining PacBio long reads and Hi-C sequencing data. This chromosome-level genome assembly was 1.55 Gb in size with a scaffold N50 of 156 Mb. The benchmarking universal single-copy ortholog (BUSCO) analysis of the assembly captured 96.6% of the BUSCO genes. A total of 686,888,052 bp of repeat sequences, 18,511 protein-coding genes, and 1,749 noncoding RNAs were annotated. By comparing the A. chinensis genome with that of 8 homologous insects and 2 model organisms, 213 rapidly evolving gene families were identified, including 83 expanded and 130 contracted gene families. The functional enrichment of Gene Ontology and KEGG pathways showed that the significantly expanded gene families were primarily involved in metabolism, immunity, detoxification, and DNA/RNA replication associated with stress responses. The data reported here shed light on the ecological adaptation of A. chinensis and further expanded our understanding of true bug evolution in general.

In vivo and in vitro antiproliferative and antimetastatic effects of hemolymph of Aspongopus chinensis Dallas on breast cancer cell.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of Aspongopus（A.）chinensis hemolymph on the proliferation and metastasis of breast cancer cells. METHODS: The in vitro effects of A. chinensis hemolymph were investigated in murine (4T1) and human (HCC1937) breast cancer cell lines. Cytotoxicity, cell apoptosis, and cell migration were evaluated by using the cell counting kit-8 assay, Hoechst staining, and wound healing experiments, respectively. A syngeneic mouse model was established to evaluate the in vivo effects of the hemolymph extract on tumor growth and metastasis. Mouse body weight, tumor size, blood levels of function-related enzymes, and pathological features of the liver and kidney tissues were evaluated. RESULTS: The hemolymph of A. chinensis significantly inhibited in vitro tumor cell migration and viability while inducing apoptosis. Furthermore, it inhibited in vivo tumor growth and metastasis with a minimal effect on mouse body weight, and did not induce liver or kidney damage. CONCLUSION: Our results suggested that the A.chinensis hemolymph has antitumorigenic properties, suggesting it has potential as a novel therapeutic option for the treatment of metastatic breast cancer.