New mariner elements in Anastrepha species (Diptera: Tephritidae)

mariner-like elements (mle) are members from class ii of transposable elements also known as dna transposons. these elements have a wide distribution among different groups of organisms, including insects, which can be explained by horizontal and vertical gene-transfer. mle families have been described in tephritid flies and other genera. during screening for wolbachia bacteria in fruit flies of the genus anastrepha, we discovered two sequences related to mariner-like elements. based on these sequences, we designed primers that allowed us to isolate and characterize two new mariner-like elements (anmar1 and anmar2) in anastrepha flies. these elements, which belong to the mellifera and rosa subfamilies have a low nucleotide diversity, and are probably inactive and acquired by vertical transfer. this is the first report of mariner-like transposons in flies found in south america.