title: Complete mtDNA of Meretrix lusoria (Bivalvia: Veneridae) reveals the presence of an atp8 gene, length variation and heteroplasmy in the control region.
abstract: The complete nucleotide sequence of the mitochondrial genome of the clam Meretrix lusoria (Bivalvia: Veneridae) was determined. It comprises 20,268 base pairs (bp) and contains 13 protein-coding genes, including ATPase subunit 8 (atp8), two ribosomal RNAs, 22 transfer RNAs, and a non-coding control region. The atp8 encodes a protein of 39 amino acids. All genes are encoded on the same strand. A putative control region (CR or D-loop) was identified in the major non-coding region (NCR) between the tRNA(Gly) and tRNA(Gln). A 1087 bp tandem repeat fragment was identified that comprises nearly 11 copies of a 101 bp motif and accounts for approximately 41% of the NCR. The 101 bp tandem repeat motif of the NCR can be folded into a stem-loop secondary structure. Samples of eight individuals from Hainan and Fujian provinces were collected and their NCR regions were successfully amplified and sequenced. The data revealed a highly polymorphic VNTR (variable number of tandem repeats) associated with high levels of heteroplasmy in the D-loop region. The size of the CR ranged from 1942 to 3354 bp depending upon the copy number of the repeat sequence.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China.
authors.forename: Hongxia
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Suping
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Yang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Baozhong
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D020029:Base Pairing; D001483:Base Sequence; D049872:Bivalvia / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics*; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics*; D054629:Genome, Mitochondrial; D018598:Minisatellite Repeats; D009690:Nucleic Acid Conformation; D016366:Open Reading Frames; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D012335:RNA, Ribosomal / Q000235:genetics; D012343:RNA, Transfer / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D022661:RNA, Untranslated / Q000235:genetics; D012091:Repetitive Sequences, Nucleic Acid
chemical_list: D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial; D012335:RNA, Ribosomal; D022661:RNA, Untranslated; D012343:RNA, Transfer