Complete mitochondrial genome of Manis pentadactyla pentadactyla (Mammalia:Pholidota), an endemic subspecies of Chinesepangolin: mitogenome characterisation and phylogenetic implications

Abstract

The Chinese pangolin Manis pentadactyla is critically endangered because of overexploitation and illegal trafficking and includes three subspecies. However, the taxonomicstatus of the three subspecies of the Chinese pangolin has not been well resolved, whichimpedes regional conservation and illegal trade traces. In this study, the completemitogenome sequence of M. p. pentadactyla, an endemic subspecies of the Chinese pangolin in Taiwan, was determined. The complete mitogenome of M. p. pentadactyla is16,570 base pairs (bp) in length with 13 protein-coding genes (PCG), 23 transfer RNAs(tRNAs), two ribosomal RNAs and a 1164 bp control region. The overall base compositionof the genome showed a slight A + T bias (59.9%), positive AT skew (0.1515) and negativeGC skew (-0.3406), which is similar to that of other pangolins. All PCGs started with atypical ATN codon and all tRNAs were typical cloverleaf-shaped secondary structures,except for tRNA-Ser. Phylogenetic analysis indicated a monophyletic relationship forM. p. pentadactyla and M. p. aurita and was monophyletic for M. p. pentadactyla, butparaphyletic for M. p. aurita. The paraphyly of M. p. aurita resulted from an incompletelineage sorting. This study enriched the mitogenome database of the Chinese pangolin andthe molecular information obtained should be very useful for future research onmitogenome evolution and genetic diversification in M. pentadactyla