Complete nucleotide sequence and organization of the mitogenome of the red-spotted apollo butterfly, Parnassius bremeri (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae) and comparison with other lepidopteran insects.
The 15,389-bp long complete mitogenome of the endangered red-spotted apollo butterfly, Parnassius bremeri (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae) was determined in this study. The start codon for the COI gene in insects has been extensively discussed, and has long remained a matter of some controversy. Herein, we propose that the CGA (arginine) sequence functions as the start codon for the COI gene in lepidopteran insects, on the basis of complete mitogenome sequences of lepidopteran insects, including P. bremeri, as well as additional sequences of the COI start region from a diverse taxonomic range of lepidopteran species (a total of 53 species from 15 families). In our extensive search for a tRNA-like structure in the A+T-rich region, one tRNA(Trp)-like sequence and one tRNA(Leu) (UUR)-like sequence were detected in the P. bremeri A+T-rich region, and one or more tRNA-like structures were detected in the A+T-rich region of the majority of other sequenced lepidopteran insects, thereby indicating that such features occur frequently in the lepidopteran mitogenomes. Phylogenetic analysis using the concatenated 13 amino acid sequences and nucleotide sequences of PCGs of the four macrolepidopteran superfamilies together with the Tortricoidea and Pyraloidea resulted in the successful recovery of a monophyly of Papilionoidea and a monophyly of Bombycoidea. However, the Geometroidea were unexpectedly identified as a sister group of the Bombycoidea, rather than the Papilionoidea.
Kim
Man Il
MI
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Chonnam National University, Gwangju 500-757, Korea.
Baek
Jee Yeon
JY
Kim
Min Jee
MJ
Jeong
Heon Cheon
HC
Kim
Ki-Gyoung
KG
Bae
Chang Hwan
CH
Han
Yeon Soo
YS
Jin
Byung Rae
BR
Kim
Iksoo
I
D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D056727:Endangered Species; D049750:Genome, Insect / Q000235:genetics*; D007915:Lepidoptera / Q000235:genetics*; D010802:Phylogeny; D012343:RNA, Transfer
D012343:RNA, Transfer