Complete mitochondrial genome of the freshwater fish Acrossocheilus longipinnis (Teleostei: Cyprinidae): genome characterization and phylogenetic analysis

Abstract

The genus Acrossocheilus is composed of small- to medium-sized barbine species and is distributed in Laos, Vietnam, Hainan, Taiwan and mainland China. To verify the molecular phylogeny of the genus Acrossocheilus, we report a new whole mitogenome of A. longipinnis, which provides new insights to better understand the taxonomic status of Acrossocheilus fishes. Phylogenetic trees presented two major clades based on whole mitogenomic data from sixteen Acrossocheilus species. Clade I is the ancestral group, including A. monticola and A. yunnanensis. The remaining species form clade II, which can be separated into two subclades (subclades A and B) with strong support. Subclade B clusters indicate that A. longipinnis forms a monophyletic group with A. iridescens and A. barbodon. Landscape evolution can strongly affect the evolutionary diversification of freshwater fishes. The Nanling and Wuyi Mountains, Taiwan Strait and Qiongzhou Strait played a key role in the geographical barriers for Acrossocheilus diversification. Our results improve our understanding of Acrossocheilus mitogenome structure and evolution, which will be useful for phylogenetic analysis and species identification.