The Nothoaspis amazoniensis Complete Mitogenome: A Comparative and Phylogenetic Analysis

• Published in: Veterinary sciences Vol. 5; no. 2; p. 37
• Main Authors: Lima, Paulo H C, Vidigal, Pedro M P, Barcelos, Rafael M, Klein, Raphael C, Montandon, Carlos E, Fabres-Klein, Mary H, Dergam, Jorge A, Venzal, José M, Mafra, Cláudio
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 27.03.2018; MDPI
• Subjects: argasids; Bioinformatics; Classification; Deoxyribonucleic acid; Developmental stages; DNA; Genomes; Identification; Mitochondria; Mitochondrial DNA; mitogenome; Morphology; Next-generation sequencing; Nothoaspis amazoniensis; Parasitism; Phylogenetics; phylogenomic; Phylogeny; taxonomic arrangement; Taxonomy; ticks; Vectors; Brazil; United States > US; argasids; phylogenomic; ticks; mitogenome; Nothoaspis amazoniensis; taxonomic arrangement
• ISSN: 2306-7381; 2306-7381
• DOI: 10.3390/vetsci5020037

The molecular biology era, together with morphology, molecular phylogenetics, bioinformatics, and high-throughput sequencing technologies, improved the taxonomic identification of Argasidae family members, especially when considering specimens at different development stages, which remains a great difficulty for acarologists. These tools could provide important data and insights on the history and evolutionary relationships of argasids. To better understand these relationships, we sequenced and assembled the first complete mitochondrial genome of . We used phylogenomics to identify the evolutionary history of this species of tick, comparing the data obtained with 26 complete mitochondrial sequences available in biological databases. The results demonstrated the absence of genetic rearrangements, high similarity and identity, and a close organizational link between the mitogenomes of . and other argasids analyzed. In addition, the mitogenome had a monophyletic cladistic taxonomic arrangement, encompassed by representatives of the Afrotropical and Neotropical regions, with specific parasitism in bats, which may be indicative of an evolutionary process of cospeciation between vectors and the host.