The Complete Mitochondrial Genomes of two Flying Fishes, Cheilopogon pinnatibarbatus japonicus and Hirundichthys rondeletii

Abstract

Background: Genome-scale approaches have played a significant role in the analysis of evolutionary relationships. Because of rich polymorphisms, high evolutionary rate and rare recombination, mitochondrial DNA sequences are commonly considered as effective markers for estimating population genetics, evolutionary and phylogenetic relationships. Flying fishes are important components of epipelagic ecosystems. Up to now, only few complete mitochondrial genomes of flying fishes have been reported. In the present study, the complete mitochondrial DNA sequences of the Cheilopogon pinnatibarbatus japonicus and Hirundichthys rondeletii had been determined. Methods: Based on the published mitogenome of Cheilopogon atrisignis (GenBank: KU360729), fifteen pairs of primers were designed by the software Primer Premier 5.0 to get the complete mitochondrial genomes of two flying fishes. According to the reported data, the phylogenetic position of two flying fishes were detected using the conserved 12 protein-coding genes. Result: The complete mitochondrial genomes of Cheilopogon pinnatibarbatus japonicus and Hirundichthys rondeletii are determined. They are 16532bp and 16525bp in length, respectively. And they both consists of 13 protein-coding genes, 22 transfer RNA (tRNA) genes, two ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes and a control region. The OL regions are conserved in these two flying fishes and might have no function. From the tree topologies, we found C.p. japonicus and H. rondeletii clustered in a group. The findings of the study would contribute to the phylogenetic classification and the genetic conservation management of C.p. japonicus and H. rondeletii.