Abstract
BackgroundThe origin, evolution and speciation of the lion, has been subject of interest, debate and study. The present surviving lions of the genus Panthera comprise of eight sub-species inclusive of Asiatic lion Panthera leo persica of India's Gir forest. Except for the Asiatic lion, the other seven subspecies are found in different parts of Africa. There have been different opinions regarding the phylogenetic status of Panthera leo, as well as classifying lions of different geographic regions into subspecies and races. In the present study, mitogenome sequence of P. leo persica deduced, using Ion Torrent PGM to assess phylogeny and evolution which may play an increasingly important role in conservation biology.ResultsThe mtDNA sequence of P. leo persica is 17,057 bp in length with 40.8% GC content. Annotation of mitogenome revealed total 37 genes, including 13 protein coding, 2 rRNA and 22 tRNA. Phylogenetic analysis based on whole mitogenome, suggests Panthera pardus as a neighbouring species to P. leo with species divergence at ~2.96 mya.ConclusionThis work presents first report on complete mitogenome of Panthera leo persica. It sheds light on the phylogenetic and evolutionary status within and across Felidae members. The result compared and evaluated with earlier reports of Felidae shows alteration of phylogenetic status and species evolution. This study may provide information on genetic diversity and population stability.
Highlights
The origin, evolution and speciation of the lion, has been subject of interest, debate and study
Present study describes sequencing of complete mitogenome of Asiatic Lion (P. leo persica) with the use of generation sequencing technology on Ion TorrentPGM platform
Base composition of mitochondrial genome of Panthera leo persica The complete mitogenome sequence of P. leo persica is 17,057 bp in length (GenBank accession No: KC834784), which is larger than Panthera pardus (16,964) and Uncia uncia (16,773)
Summary
The origin, evolution and speciation of the lion, has been subject of interest, debate and study. Five big charismatic cats: Panthera leo (lion), Panthera tigris (tiger), Panthera onca (jaguar), Panthera pardus (leopard) and Uncia uncia (snow leopard) have been placed taxonomically in Pantherinae subfamily They have been drawing attention of biologists due to important ecological roles [1]. The Asiatic lion population is accorded endangered species status under the Indian Wildlife Protection Act, consisting only 411 wild animals [4]. This population exist in and around Gir forest in the southwest part of Saurashtra region in the State of Gujarat, India. Earlier efforts have been made to undertake the population study of Panthera leo persica (NCBI Taxonomy ID: 83386) and other allied species [8] to establish phylogenetic status. It has been found to be perplexing [7]
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