Comparative analysis of the mitochondrial genomes of the soft-shelled turtles Palea steindachneri and Pelodiscus axenaria and phylogenetic implications for Trionychia.

ABSTRACT: Soft-shelled turtles, or Trionychia, are an enigmatic and fascinating group due to their specific morphological features and ecological adaptations. Based on mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and/or nuclear markers, previous studies showed the incongruent phylogenetic topologies within Trionychia (e.g., the Palea and its closely related species). In order to resolve the equivocal relationships and obtain some "genome-level" common evolutionary characters of soft-shelled turtles, in this study, we assembled and annotated the complete mitochondrial genomes of Palea steindachneri and Pelodiscus axenaria, both naturally distributed in Asia. The sizes of the two mitochondrial genomes were 16,811 bp and 17,143 bp, respectively. Typical vertebrate animal mtDNA features were observed, such as the usual ge

SUBMITTER: Chen C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11871352 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature