Mitochondrial Genome and Phylogeny of Takifugu xanthopterus

  Objective   Mitochondrial genome of Yellowfin Puffer (Takifugu xanthopterus) was studied to analyze the genetic diversity and phylogeny of the fish.

  Method  Mitochondrial genome of T. xanthopterus found in Dayang River was sequenced by high-throughput sequencing technology.

  Result  The complete mitochondrial genome was 16444 bp (GenBank accession No. MT560586) consisting of 13 protein-coding genes, 22 transfer RNAs, 2 ribosomal RNAs, one control region, and one O_L. The 13 protein-coding genes started with ATG codon except for cox1, which started with a special GTG codon. Cox2 and nad4 ended with codon T. The preference codon (RSCU＞2) included Arg (CGA) and Ser (UCC). All 22 tRNA genes, except trnS1, had the typical cloverleaf-like secondary structure. Taking Monotreta leiurus as the outgroup, the complete mitochondrial genome sequences of 16 species of pufferfish were analyzed for evolutionary relationship. The phylogenetic tree constructed by Bayes software showed that T. xanthopterus was closely related to T. chrysops and T. pardalis.

  Conclusion  The mitochondrial genome structure and gene order of T. xanthopterus as analyzed seemed to be typical of fish.