Conventional Taxonomy Research Articles

Living on the edge: Assessing the diversity of South African Pocillopora on the margins of the Southwestern Indian Ocean.

Scleractinia of the Maputaland reef complex (MRC) in South Africa exist at the margins of the Western Indian Ocean (WIO) coral distribution and are the only substantial hermatypic coral communities in South Africa. Pocillopora species occupy a conspicuous component of the MRC, and previous investigations identified three species of Pocillopora utilizing conventional taxonomy. Thus, our aims were four-fold: to elucidate Pocillopora species diversity using genetic techniques, primarily using species delimitation methods based on the ORF gene; to test for the presence of hybridisation within the Pocillopora community on the South-West margin of distribution in the Indian Ocean using two nuclear and two mitochondrial markers; to test the presence of cryptic species, using 13 microsatellite markers, finally, to elucidate the degree of genetic diversity within each Pocillopora species found and compare this to communities in lower latitudes. We illustrate taxonomic inconsistencies between these inventories and our phylogenetic data. The MRC harbours unique populations of Pocillopora, consisting of three species hypothetically co-occurring throughout the south WIO, namely: P. meandrina/P. eydouxi, commonly misidentified as P. verrucosa, P. verrucosa, sometimes correctly identified, but also commonly misidentified as P. damicornis sensu lato, and P. villosa, almost always misidentified as P. eydouxi. The hypothesis that hybrid swarms of Pocillopora occur in marginal environments such as the MRC was not supported, with low levels of introgressive hybridization reported instead. Analyses illustrate low genetic diversity at the species and population resolutions, suggesting a small founder population for each species. Nevertheless, these populations are demographically unique, exhibiting high levels of ITS2 haplotype endemism compared to higher latitude populations and the rest of the WIO. Pocillopora diversity on the MRC represents a unique assemblage and warrants further protection.

DNA barcoding of spiders from agricultural fields

In the present study, DNA barcoding was used to assess the percentage accuracy of morphological base identification of spiders from the agriculture fields of district Layyah, Punjab, Pakistan. A total of 872 spiders were captured from June to August of 2017. All the collected spiders were brought to molecular laboratory at GC University Lahore, preserved in 95% ethanol and stored at −20 °C until the DNA extraction. Spiders were evaluated morphologically on the basis of different identification Keys and Catalogs. Morphological identification revealed the presence of 12 families, 29 genra and 49 species. To evaluate the authenticity of morphological identification, tissue samples of 96 specimens were sent to Canadian Center for Biodiversity and Genomics, University of Guelph, Canada. A 658-base pair sequence of COI (Cytochrome c Oxidase Subunit I) of 90 specimens was retrieved successfully, which confirmed the presence of 11 families, 25 genra and 47 species. On the basis of molecular results, all the misidentified specimens were then allotted the correct taxon. Overall accuracy of morphological based identification was 88%. It is concluded from the present study that morphological investigations to identify a spider, are satisfactory but to enhance the accuracy, pace and credibility of results, molecular technique like DNA barcoding is considerable. Furthermore, to magnify authenticity of evaluation of spiders, integrated barcoding- combination of molecular methods and conventional taxonomy- is compulsory.

The complete mitochondrial genome of Smaragdina nigrifrons (Coleoptera: Eumolpidae): characterization and phylogenetic position

The complete mitogenome of Smaragdina nigrifrons (GenBank accession number MN584924) is 15,903 bp in length, and includes 13 protein-coding genes (PCGs), 22 transfer RNA genes (tRNAs), 2 ribosomal RNA genes, and a control region. The overall base composition was as follows: A, 38.18%; T, 35.25%; C, 15.97%; and G, 10.60%, with a total of A + T content of 73.43%. Eleven reading frame overlaps and thirteen intergenic regions were found in the mitogenome of S. nigrifrons. All 13 PCGs are initiated with the typical ATN codons, and are terminated with either the complete TAA/TAG codons or a single T residue. All tRNAs possess the typical cloverleaf secondary structures except for trnS1 (AGN). Phylogenetic analyses showed that S. nigrifrons was closely related to Cucujus clavipes, which was consistent with the conventional taxonomy.

Genomics overrules mitochondrial DNA, siding with morphology on a controversial case of species delimitation.

Species delimitation is a major quest in biology and is essential for adequate management of the organismal diversity. A challenging example comprises the fish species of red snappers in the Western Atlantic. Red snappers have been traditionally recognized as two separate species based on morphology: Lutjanus campechanus (northern red snapper) and L. purpureus (southern red snapper). Recent genetic studies using mitochondrial markers, however, failed to delineate these nominal species, leading to the current lumping of the northern and southern populations into a single species ( L. campechanus). This decision carries broad implications for conservation and management as red snappers have been commercially over-exploited across the Western Atlantic and are currently listed as vulnerable. To address this conflict, we examine genome-wide data collected throughout the range of the two species. Population genomics, phylogenetic and coalescent analyses favour the existence of two independent evolutionary lineages, a result that confirms the morphology-based delimitation scenario in agreement with conventional taxonomy. Despite finding evidence of introgression in geographically neighbouring populations in northern South America, our genomic analyses strongly support isolation and differentiation of these species, suggesting that the northern and southern red snappers should be treated as distinct taxonomic entities.

Synteny footprints provide clearer phylogenetic signal than sequence data for prokaryotic classification

BackgroundExtensive research efforts have been made to reconstruct the Tree of Life, aiming to explain the evolutionary history of life on earth. We expect the advent of next generation sequencing methods to bring us close to solving this challenge. Notwithstanding, with the accumulation of this mass of molecular data, it becomes evident that this solution is more complex and far from reach, especially among prokaryotes. One of the reasons for this is the ability of bacteria to perform horizontal gene transfer (HGT), creating substantial conflicts between different genes histories. Fortunately, evolution has equipped us with several markers with different levels of resolution, among which is synteny - the conservation of gene order along the chromosome. ResultsWe have performed a comprehensive phylogenomic study via synteny based footprints. We build on the synteny index (SI) concept, defined in a pilot work of ours, and extend it to a systematic phylogenetic method with well defined valid regions of operations. Applying it to the EggNOG repository, divides all species into 39 clusters, agreeing with the conventional taxonomy. We show analytically that the signal of the standard phylogenetic marker, the 16S, is too faint for reliable classification. ConclusionsThis work exhibits three separate yet related contributions. In terms of phylogenetics, it demonstrates quantitatively the advantage of the SI-based approach over the standard sequence based marker. Evolutionarily, the tree we produce is unique both in its specificity and broadness. Methodologically, the U-shape approach we developed, from synthetic realm, to real life and back to simulation, is novel and allow us to simulate the exact realistic conditions.

Complete mitochondrial genome of the tomato leafminer Tuta absoluta (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae)

The complete mitochondrial genome of the tomato leafminer Tuta absoluta was determined in this study. It is 15,290 bp in length and consists of 13 protein-coding genes (PCGs), 22 tRNA genes, two rRNA genes, and a putative control region. All the 13 PCGs were initiated with typical ATN start codons, except for cox1 with the CGA. These PCGs were terminated by the typical TAA codon or the incomplete T– – codon. The phylogenetic relationships based on neighbour-joining method revealed that T. absoluta is clustered with six Gelechiidae species, which agree with the conventional taxonomy.

Sequencing the Ant fauna of a Small Island: Can Metagenomic Analysis Enable Faster Identification for Routine Ant Surveys?

All known ant species from a small Western Australian island were subjected to DNA barcoding of the CO1 gene, with a view to using the database to identify ants by Next Generation Sequencing in subsequent, routine surveys. A further aim was to evaluate whether the data could be used to see if any new species had arrived on the island since the total fauna had been inventoried. Of the 125 unique ant species then known from the island, 72 were successfully barcoded. Those that were refractory to amplification were largely the result of sample age and/or contamination. Following this base-line barcoding, ants were sampled from 14 regular sampling sites and ant sequences were obtained from the bulked ‘metagenomic soup’. Prior to doing this, a parataxonomist had identified all ant species in the samples and returned them to the ‘soup’. Successful identification for each site varied from 38% (Sites 12 and 27) to 100% of species (Site 10). Comparison of the number of species recovered with the number of sequences obtained from each sample showed a positive correlation between the two variables. When a site had >1,000 sequences, the average recovery rate was 79%, which is in contrast to the lowest four recovery rates (Site samples 12, 22, 26 and 27), which had fewer than 440 amplicon sequences. The ability to detect individuals that occur at low frequencies is also important. We analysed each site individually to determine if a species was detected and how that related to the proportion of individuals in the pooled sample. Where a species was present at <4% of the total sample, it was only detected 10% of the time, indicating that adequate sequencing depth is critical to species recovery. We conclude that this technique was only partially successful in replacing conventional taxonomy and that it could have limited ability to detect incursions unless the new arrival is abundant. Current barcoding is no longer limited to the CO1 gene and other genes are characterised for identification of intractable groups where CO1 does not provide appropriate levels of resolution.

Experience-based knowledge increases confidence in discriminating our memories

The present study investigated the accuracy of metacognitive judgments in source monitoring with self-report scales engaging either information- or experienced-based knowledge. We expected that the source monitoring abilities may be affected by the origins of meta-knowledge that underlie post-decision wagering (PDW) based on economic categorizations (experience-based scale) and confidence ratings (CR) using a conventional taxonomy of confidence (information-based scale). To examine this hypothesis, healthy participants (N = 50) performed an action memory task, in which simple actions were presented in order to be performed or imagined. In the second phase of the task, participants were required to assess source monitoring by distinguishing whether the presented action was performed or imagined. Then, the participants randomly assigned into the PDW or CR group rated their confidence in responses related to source monitoring performance. It was found that source monitoring ability is resistant to manipulation of the type of knowledge used in the scales. However, measures of metacognition indicated that accuracy of the experienced-based judgments of PDW was higher as compared to the CR scale while source monitoring. These findings suggest the origin of knowledge whose justification rests more on empirical observations generates more accurate knowledge than self-evident direct intuition with respect to discriminations of one’s own memories.

Profiling of Phenolic Compounds and Antioxidant Activity of 12 Cruciferous Vegetables.

The phenolic profiles of 12 cruciferous vegetables (pakchoi, choysum, Chinese cabbage, kailan, Brussels sprout, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, rocket salad, red cherry radish, daikon radish, and watercress) were studied with UHPLC-MS/MS. Antioxidant activity and total phenolic content (TPC) were also evaluated. A total of 74 phenolic compounds were identified, including 16 hydroxycinnamic acids and derivatives, and 58 flavonoids and derivatives. The main flavonoids identified were glycosylated quercetin, kaempferol and isorhamnetin, and the main hydroxycinnamic acids were ferulic, sinapic, caffeic and p-coumaric acids. Principal component analysis (PCA) revealed that the distribution of phenolic compounds in different genera of cruciferous vegetables was in accordance with their conventional taxonomy. The DPPH, ORAC and TPC values ranged from 1.11 to 9.54 µmoles Trolox equivalent/g FW, 5.34 to 32.92 µmoles Trolox equivalent/g FW, and 0.16 to 1.93 mg gallic acid equivalent/g FW respectively. Spearman’s correlation showed significant (p < 0.05) positive correlations between TPC, flavonoids and antioxidant activity.

Building compatible and dynamic character matrices – Current and future use of specimen-based character data

Herbarium specimens have always played a central role in plant sciences and constitute the cornerstone for systematic and taxonomy. This role is further strengthened with the ongoing digitisation and growing online-availability of collections all over the globe. The increasing usability of specimens demands, however, an improved use and sustainable handling of specimen data not only in new scientific uses correlated with the digitisation, but also by modern workflows applied to the traditional purpose of specimens. A crucial step in the comparative analyses of organisms is the preparation of a character matrix to observe and assess the morphological extent and variability of taxa on the basis of individual specimens. This process and the resulting matrix often are of ephemeral nature since only its results are published in a condensed form. The data relationships are usually not stored, making a re-use impossible and a new analysis inevitable. To overcome the limitations of conventional taxonomy, we here introduce a comprehensive workflow that is currently being implemented on the EDIT Platform for Cybertaxonomy.

Species diversity in the marine microturbellarian Astrotorhynchus bifidus sensu lato (Platyhelminthes: Rhabdocoela) from the Northeast Pacific Ocean

Increasing evidence suggests that many widespread species of meiofauna are in fact regional complexes of (pseudo-)cryptic species. This knowledge has challenged the ‘Everything is Everywhere’ hypothesis and also partly explains the meiofauna paradox of widespread nominal species with limited dispersal abilities. Here, we investigated species diversity within the marine microturbellarian Astrotorhynchus bifidus sensu lato in the Northeast Pacific Ocean. We used a multiple-evidence approach combining multi-gene (18S, 28S, COI) phylogenetic analyses, several single-gene and multi-gene species delimitation methods, haplotype networks and conventional taxonomy to designate Primary Species Hypotheses (PSHs). This included the development of rhabdocoel-specific COI barcode primers, which also have the potential to aid in species identification and delimitation in other rhabdocoels. Secondary Species Hypotheses (SSHs) corresponding to morphospecies and pseudo-cryptic species were then proposed based on the minimum consensus of different PSHs. Our results showed that (a) there are at least five species in the A. bifidus complex in the Northeast Pacific Ocean, four of which can be diagnosed based on stylet morphology, (b) the A. bifidus complex is a mixture of sympatric and allopatric species with regional and/or subglobal distributions, (c) sympatry occurs on local (sample sites), regional (Northeastern Pacific) and subglobal (Northern Atlantic, Arctic, Northeastern Pacific) scales. Mechanisms for this co-occurrence are still poorly understood, but we hypothesize they could include habitat differentiation (spatial and/or seasonal) and life history characteristics such as sexual selection and dispersal abilities. Our results also suggest the need for improved sampling and exploration of molecular markers to accurately map gene flow and broaden our understanding of species diversity and distribution of microturbellarians in particular and meiofauna in general.

16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing reveals dominance of Actinobacteria in Rhodnius pallescens compared to Triatoma maculata midgut microbiota in natural populations of vector insects from Colombia

Chagas disease affects more than 6 million people in Latin America, it is a parasitic disease caused by the protozoan Trypanosoma cruzi, which is transmitted mainly by bloodsucking insects of the Triatominae subfamily. Studies on microbial communities that inhabit the insect gut are important to understanding their role in the parasite transmission and development. The present work aims to evaluate the gut bacterial composition of natural populations of triatomine species from Vichada and Magdalena, administrative states called departments in Colombia, using high-throughput sequencing technologies. The insects were collected from housing peridomestic area and Attalea butyracea palms; they were identified by conventional taxonomy as Triatoma maculata and Rhodnius pallescens, and their guts were dissected under aseptic conditions in order to obtain total DNA. After DNA quality confirmation, the sequencing of the V4 region of 16S rRNA gene was carried out using the Illumina platform MiSeq. The results showed that 13 predominant bacterial genera were present in both species, being Burkholderia, Gordonia, and Ralstonia, the most prevailing bacterial genera. Furthermore, representative genera of each species were found. Williamsia and Kocuria were the most common in R. pallescens; and Dietzia, Aeromonas, and Pelomonas were only observed in T. maculata samples. This is the first study of microbiota associated with these triatomine species using massive sequencing methods The approach allowed inferring the presence of a dominant population of bacteria according to the triatomine species in Colombia, which may suggest a strong association between microbiota and their host.

The actuopaleontological studies on Cuban scleractinians and coral reefs of half a century ago are not over

Gathering and studying a rich collection of fossil corals in Bulgaria led to the definition of various new taxa, but highlighted the gaps in our knowledge of fossil Scleractinia. I needed to learn from living corals. An actuopaleontological project with massive sampling of all phenotypes following coral life in depth in Cuba (1970–1973) showed extraordinary scleractinian variability and led to “heresy” regarding the conventional Caribbean taxonomy. Subsequent fundamental new knowledge challenged Scleractinia taxonomy and justified the results of the investigation of the Cuban corals, through continuing contributions to: holistic approach to scleractinian species; integrative character of coral taxonomy; new paleobiological perspectives and tasks for study; and the evolutionary benefits of hybridization for reef survival. Continuing research can be supported by: an 80% preserved collection; a scientific audiovisual documentary; a monograph in Russian, French, and soon Spanish; and a substantially and rarely preserved coral life and reef ecosystem.

The new phylogeny of the genus Mycobacterium: The old and the news

BackgroundPhylogenetic studies of bacteria have been based so far either on a single gene (usually the 16S rRNA) or on concatenated housekeeping genes. For what concerns the genus Mycobacterium these approaches support the separation of rapidly and slowly growing species and the clustering of most species in well-defined phylogenetic groups. The advent of high-throughput shotgun sequencing leads us to revise conventional taxonomy of mycobacteria on the light of genomic data. For this purpose we investigated 88 newly sequenced species in addition to 60 retrieved from GenBank and used the Average Nucleotide Identity pairwise scores to reconstruct phylogenetic relationships within this genus. ResultsOur analysis confirmed the separation of slow and rapid growers and the intermediate position occupied by the M. terrae complex. Among the rapid growers, the species of the M. chelonae-abscessus complex belonged to the most ancestral cluster. Other major clades of rapid growers included the species related to M. fortuitum and M. smegmatis and a large grouping containing mostly environmental species rarely isolated from humans. The members of the M. terrae complex appeared as the most ancestral slow growers. Among slow growers two deep branches led to the clusters of species related to M. celatum and M. xenopi and to a large group harboring most of the species more frequently responsible of disease in humans, including the major pathogenic mycobacteria (M. tuberculosis, M. leprae, M. ulcerans). The species previously grouped in the M. simiae complex were allocated in a number of sub-clades; of them, only the one including the species M. simiae identified the real members of this complex. The other clades included also species previously not considered related to M. simiae. The ANI analysis, in most cases supported by Genome to Genome Distance and by Genomic Signature-Delta Difference, showed that a number of species with standing in literature were indeed synonymous. ConclusionsGenomic data revealed to be much more informative in comparison with phenotype. We believe that the genomic revolution enabled by high-throughput shotgun sequencing should now be considered in order to revise the conservative approaches still informing taxonomic sciences.

MOLECULAR AND MORPHOLOGICAL IDENTIFICATION OF STREPTOMYCES SP. NRC-88 NOVA SPECIES AS β-LACTAMASE INHIBITOR FOR PHARMACEUTICAL APPLICATION

Objective: Clavulanic acid (CA) is a vital agent in the treatment of bacterial infections since it is a potent inhibitor of an extensive variety of β-lactamase enzymes. Its production from Streptomyces strains is fact of expanding clinical significance. This study aimed to isolate and characterize a promising Streptomyces (S) species strain which produced an effective β-lactamase inhibitor.Methods: Streptomyces sp. NRC-88 was isolated from an Egyptian soil sample. The phenotypic and phylogenetic examinations of 16S rRNA gene were investigated. The active metabolite of this strain (CA) was determined by particular synergistic bioassay, spectrophotometric assay, recognized by thin layer chromatography, and structure of the CA affirmed by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method.Results: A phylogenetic examination of the 16S rRNA gene sequence of the NRC-88 strain consistent with conventional taxonomy was carried out, and confirmed that the strain NRC-88 was most similar to S. aburaviensis S-66 (99%). The active metabolite of this strain (CA) was determined by different methods and confirmed the structure of the CA by the HPLC method. It produced up to 87 mg/l in a specific CA production medium.Conclusion: A new species of Streptomyces sp. NRC-88 isolated and recognized by phenotypic and genotypic proof. This strain suggested the name, Streptomyces sp. NRC-88 (accession number KM014489). It was able to produce CA as the β-lactamase inhibitor.

Conventional Taxonomy of Four Tilapia Species in South-East Coast of India

Tilapia belongs to the family Cichlidae. Tilapia is a generic term used to designate a group of commercially important food fishes belonging to the family Cichlidae. Tilapia species have been re-classified into three separate genera viz., Tilapia, Sarotherodon and Oreochromis, based mainly on their reproduction and feeding habits and biogeography. Tilapias are very sturdy in nature. The family Cichlidaeis is one of the most species-rich families of vertebrates. More than 3,000 species of cichlid fishes are distributed from Central and South America, through Africa and Madagascar to Southern India. Classification of species is fundamental for carrying out researches in biodiversity, ecology, evolutionary biology and conservation biology. With this as the background in the present study, four species of fishes namely O. mossambicus and O.niloticus, Tilapia rendalli and T.zilliiare were sequenced for their 647 bp, 645 bp, 642 and 481 region of cytochrome oxidase sub-unit I (COI) gene to test their efficacy in identifying the species and also to demonstrate their intra-species variations within the barcode region. The sequences were analyzed for their species identification, using the Barcode of Life Database (BOLD’s) identification engine. The COI sequences of O. mossambicus, O.niloticus, Tilapia rendalli and T.zillii from different geographical regions were extracted from NCBI for analyzing the intra-species variation. While comparing the sequences in the NCBI database with the present sequences, significant alignments with maximum similarity ranging from 99% to 100% were noticed. Four sequences are aligned using ClustalW. A phylogenetic tree was constructed with Bootstrap test. The optimal tree with the sum of branch length showed 0.000976 for O. mossambicus, 0.001556 for O. niloticus and 0.000000 for T. rendalli and T.zillii. In O. mossambicus, the maximum GC content was 46.9% whereas the GC content in all other closely related species was found to be 46% on an average. In O. niloticus, the maximum GC content of 47.9% was noticed and the closely related sequences exhibited 48% average in GC content (T.zillii 50.2% and T.rendalli 46.6%).The analyses revealed the molar concentration of bar-coded genes. The evolutionary relationship was inferred with the closely related sequences obtained from the NCBI database. Sequence divergence between individuals of the same species ranged from 0 to 0.057. Both phylography and phylogeographic signals were evident from the phylogram constructed with O. mossambicus and O.niloticus as the same group. Even though the present results confirm that the COI could be a potential barcode gene for species level identification, further research is needed for describing the divergence of sequences in a broader sense. Analysis of data undertaken with conventional tools like PCR amplification and gene sequencing methods clearly revealed the healthy nature of environment along the south-east coast of India. Keywords: Intra species, Variations, Barcode, Cytochrome oxidase, Phylogenetic

Molecular phylogeny and phylogeography of genus Pseudois (Bovidae, Cetartiodactyla): New insights into the contrasting phylogeographic structure.

Blue sheep, Pseudois nayaur, is endemic to the Tibetan Plateau and the surrounding mountains, which are the highest‐elevation areas in the world. Classical morphological taxonomy suggests that there are two subspecies in genus Pseudois (Bovidae, Artiodactyla), namely Pseudois nayaur nayaur and Pseudois nayaur szechuanensis. However, the validity and geographic characteristics of these subspecies have never been carefully discussed and analyzed. This may be partially because previous studies have mainly focused on the vague taxonomic status of Pseudois schaeferi (dwarf blue sheep). Thus, there is an urgent need to investigate the evolutionary relationship and taxonomy system of this genus. This study enriches a previous dataset by providing a large number of new samples, based on a total of 225 samples covering almost the entire distribution of blue sheep. Molecular data from cytochrome b and the mitochondrial control region sequences were used to reconstruct the phylogeny of this species. The phylogenetic inferences show that vicariance plays an important role in diversification within this genus. In terms of molecular dating results and biogeographic analyses, the striking biogeographic pattern coincides significantly with major geophysical events. Although the results raise doubt about the present recognized distribution range of blue sheep, they have corroborated the validity of the identified subspecies in genus Pseudois. Meanwhile, these results demonstrate that the two geographically distinct populations, the Helan Mountains and Pamir Plateau populations, have been significantly differentiated from the identified subspecies, a finding that challenges the conventional taxonomy of blue sheep.

The complete mitochondrial genome of the cigarette beetle, Lasioderma serricorne (Coleoptera: Anobiidae)

The cigarette beetle, Lasioderma serricorne (Fabricius), is an important pest of stored commodities and distributed widely in the world. Here, we report the complete mitochondrial genome of L. serricorne which was 15,958 bp and composed of 13 protein-coding genes (PCGs), two rRNA genes, 22 tRNA genes and a control region. The gene order and orientation of L. serricorne were identical to those of other Coleopteran mitogenomes. ATG, ATA, ATT, ATC, TTG were initiation codons and TAA, TAG, T were termination codons. All 22 tRNA genes were predicted with a typical cloverleaf structure except for trnS1 (AGN). Phylogenetic analysis performed using 13 PCGs with 14 other beetles showed that L. serricorne is closely related to Stegobium paniceum, which agree with the conventional taxonomy.

DNA barcoding and phylogenetic analysis of five ascidians (Phlebobranchia) distributed in Gulf of Mannar, India

DNA barcoding has played a significant role in biodiversity assessment as well as its conservation. This technique involves sequencing of mitochondrial marker gene including a short COI gene, known as barcode gene. It has proved its efficiency in identifying several species and resolving the limitations incurred during identification through conventional taxonomy. This study involves the use of DNA barcoding of ascidian species belonging to order Phlebobranchia. A total of 14 individuals, covering two families, three genera and five species, were barcoded. COI gene sequences of all the five species were deposited for the first time in NCBI as well as BOLD. The NJ tree revealed identical phylogenetic relationship among the individuals collected from three different stations. Mean Kimura 2-parameter (K2P) distances within-species, genus, family and order were 0.08%, 6.69%, 9.49% and 18.58%, respectively. This result concludes that COI gene sequencing is the efficient tool in identifying ascidians of the order Phlebobranchia. We report for the first time the COI gene sequences of four species of ascidians studied.

The complete mitochondrial genome of the lesser aspen webworm moth Meroptera pravella (Insecta: Lepidoptera: Pyralidae)

The lesser aspen webworm moth, Meroptera pravella, is a small pyralid that uses quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides) and related tree species as larval hosts. Whole-genome Illumina sequencing allowed the assembly of a complete circular mitochondrial genome of 15,260 bp consisting of 80.7% AT nucleotides, 22 tRNAs, 13 protein-coding genes, 2 rRNAs and a control region. Mitogenome structure maintains complete synteny with other sequenced pyralid mitogenomes. Parsimony and maximum-likelihood phylogenetic reconstruction places M. pravella within monophyletic subfamily Phycitinae and monophyletic family Pyralidae. The Pyralidae, with monophyletic sister family Crambidae, constitute monophyletic superfamily Pyraloidea, which is consistent with conventional taxonomy.