The complete mitochondrial genome of Uroobovella oviformis (Kontschan & Stary, 2011) (Acari, Urodinychidae) and its phylogenetic position within the order Mesostigmata

Abstract

ABSTRACT Mitochondrial genomes are highly conserved in genetic processes and serve as a useful molecular marker for phylogenetic and evolutionary analysis. In this study, the complete mitochondrial genome of Uroobovella oviformis was sequenced and annotated. The mitochondrial genome is a closed, double-stranded circular molecule of 14,306 bp length and contains the typical 37 genes. All of the protein-coding genes started with ATN and terminated with TAA except COX2, COX3, and CYTB, which stopped with single T. The whole mitochondrial genome of U. oviformis showed a heavy AT nucleotide bias (77.69%), a positive AT-Skew (0.035), and a negative GC-Skew (−0.320), as well as translocation of seven genes including CYTB and ND6. The phylogenetic tree was constructed by Bayesian inference and maximum likelihood methods using three different datasets (PCG, PCG12, and AA), which were constructed to discuss the phylogenetic status of Mesostigmata. The analysis showed that the branching relationships among the six trees were consistent and all families except the Laelapidae were recovered as monophyletic. Furthermore, U. oviformis forms a separate clade and is located at the base of Mesostigmata and has a closer relationship with Antennophorina.