Abstract
The mitogenome of the desert toad-headed agama, Phrynocephalus przewalskii, was amplified using polymerase chain reaction (PCR), long-and-accurate PCR and directly sequenced by primer walking. The complete mitogenome was 16,892 bp in size and contained 13 protein-coding, 23 tRNA, and 2 rRNA genes, and 1 control region. The mitogenome of the P. przewalskii was similar to those of other Phrynocephalus sand lizards in gene arrangement and composition, except that tRNA-Phe and tRNA-Pro were exchanged and tRNA-Phe had two copies. The control region comprised three parts, one between tRNA-Thr and tRNA-Phe, a second between the two tRNA-Phe copies, and a third between tRNA-Pro and 12S RNA. The overall nucleotide composition of the H-strand was 36.3% A, 26.7% T, 12.5% G, 24.6% C. The complete mitogenome of P. przewalskii will contribute to understanding the evolution of the genus Phrynocephalus and the family Agamidae.
Acknowledgements
We thank Jia Xi-shuai and Li Gong for their assistance in the laboratory work.
Declaration of interest
The authors report no conflict of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the article. This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (30770240) and the Ph.D. Programs Foundation of Ministry of Education of China (20120211120040).