Comparative Analysis of Mitogenomes of Chironomus (Diptera: Chironomidae)

Abstract

(1) Background: Chironomids are biological indicators, playing an important role in monitoring and assessing the changes in water ecosystems. Mitochondrial genomes have been widely applied as a molecular marker to analyze the taxonomy and phylogeny of insects. However, knowledge of the mitogenomes of Chironomus species is scarce at present, which limits our understanding of the evolutionary relationships among Chironomus. (2) Methods: In our study, the mitogenomes and their basic structure of 12 Chironomus species and one Microchironomus species were newly sequenced. Combined with reported mitogenomes, a total of 15 mitogenomes of Chironomus were selected for a comparative mitogenomic analysis and phylogenetic reconstruction of Chironomus. (3) Results: Each mitogenome of the Chironomus species has the typical 37 genes and a control region. The basic structure of the whole mitogenomes of Chironomus species is relatively conservative, and the genetic arrangements stay the same as the ancestral mitogenome. (4) Conclusions: Our study enriches the library of mitogenomes of chironomids and provides a valuable resource for understanding the evolutionary history of Chironomus.