Braconidae revisited:Bracon brevicornisgenome showcases the potential of linked-read sequencing in identifying a putativecomplementary sex determinergene

ABSTRACT Bracon brevicornis is an ectoparasitoid of a wide range of larval-stage Lepidopterans, including several pests of important crops, such as the corn borer, Ostrinia nubilalis . It is also one of the earliest documented cases of complementary sex determination in Hymenoptera. Here, we present the linked-read genome of B. brevicornis , complete with an ab initio -derived annotation and protein comparisons with fellow braconids, Fopius arisanus and Diachasma alloem . We demonstrate the potential of linked-read assemblies in exploring regions of heterozygosity and search for structural and homology-derived evidence of the complementary sex determiner gene ( csd ).