Silencing PsASH2 affects embryo development in the cotton mealybug

Here, we identified a novel histone lysine methyltransferase (KMT) gene, PsASH2, in the cotton mealybug, Phenacoccus solenopsis Tinsley. This gene was highly expressed in the ovary of female adults. Through RNA interference (RNAi) of PsASH2 by dsRNA microinjection, we found a reduction in the number of male embryos and total embryos in the ovaries of pregnant females. Continuous downregulation of PsASH2 in mated females until their death resulted in few changes in sex ratio but significant decreases in the number of both male and female offspring., , # Silencing PsASH2 affects embryo development in the cotton mealybug

Dataset DOI: [10.5061/dryad.h70rxwdw8](10.5061/dryad.h70rxwdw8)

## Description of the data and file structure

Fig. 2: Expression profiles of *PsASH2*. Different developmental stages (A), tissue-specific (mated females) (B), tissue-specific (virgin females) (C), hours post-mating (D), and days of virgin female adults (E) expression profiles of *PsASH2* in *P. solenopsis*. The 4-day-old, 5-day-old, 6-day-old, and 7-day-old virgin female adults (E) correspond to 0 h, 24 h, 48 h, and 72 h post-mating (D). Relative expression levels were normalized and visualized as mean ± SEM with three (a, b) or four (c) biological replicates. Different lower-case letters indicate statistically significant differences (*P*<0.05) based on ANOVA and Tukey’s multiple comparisons test.

Fig. 3: RNAi effects of ds*PsASH2* on cotton mealybug embryos via dsRNA microinjection. (A) The gene expression before and after injection with dsRNA1 (lef...,