The complete mitochondrial genome sequence of Mustela eversmannii (Carnivora: Mustelidae)

Abstract

In this study, the complete mitochondrial genome of Steppe polecat, Mustela eversmannii, was sequenced for the first time using muscle tissue. The mitochondrial genome is a circular molecule of 16 463 bp in length and overall base composition is A (32.7%), T (27.3%), C (26.1%), and G (13.9%), which indicates a strong A–T bias. A phylogenetic analysis on the basis of 13 protein-coding genes and two rRNA genes of 10 Mustela species’ mitochondrial genomes using maximum likelihood (ML) and Bayesian inference (BI) demonstrated that these Mustela species were clustered into two clades and M. eversmannii was close to M. putorius.