Characterization of the complete mitochondrial genome of the critically endangered Southern River Terrapin, Batagur affinis affinis (Reptilia: Geoemydidae)

Abstract

In this study, we report the nearly complete mitochondrial sequence of Batagur affinis affinis. The assembled mitogenome consists of 13 PCGs, 22 tRNA genes, two rRNAs and one near-complete D-loop region. Of the annotated genes, the ND6 subunit gene and eight tRNA genes were encoded on the L-strand, while the remaining genes were dispersed on the H-strand. Except for CO1, which has a GTG start codon, all protein-coding genes begin with ATG. The mitogenome has been deposited in NCBI GenBank under the accession number OQ409915. Phylogenetic tree analysis based on publicly available mitogenomes indicate the sister grouping of B. affinis affinis with B. kachuga.

Keywords:

• Mitogenome
• genes
• protein-coding
• phylogenetic tree
• Batagur kachuga

Acknowledgments

We want to express our gratitude to the Laboratory of Breeding Genetics, Department of Aquaculture, Faculty of Agriculture, Universiti Putra Malaysia, for the facilities and support of this research project. We also want to thank the Turtle Conservation Society of Malaysia and the Department of Wildlife and National Parks, Peninsular Malaysia, for working together.

Author contributions

Mohd Hairul Mohd Salleh: conceptualization, methodology, formal analysis, investigation, and writing—original draft. Yuzine Esa: conceptualization, writing (review and editing), funding acquisition, resources, and advisor. Han Ming Gan: formal analysis, investigation, and report (review and editing). All authors agreed to be accountable for all aspects of the work and approved the final draught to be published.

Ethics statement

The Department of Wildlife and National Parks, Peninsular Malaysia, permitted and approved the study (B-00335-16-20) to comply with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) policies for research involving species at risk of extinction.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The genome sequence data supporting this study’s findings are openly available in GenBank of NCBI at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/under the accession number OQ409915. The associated BioProject, SRA, and Bio-Sample numbers are PRJNA767629, SRR22444522, and SAMN31872828, respectively.

Additional information

Funding

This research received no external funding, and the APC was funded by the Publication Fund, Research Management Centre, Universiti Putra Malaysia..