Characterization of Two Complete Mitochondrial Genomes of Atkinsoniella (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae: Cicadellinae) and the Phylogenetic Implications

Abstract

The complete mitochondrial genomes of Atkinsoniella grahami and Atkinsoniella xanthonota were sequenced. The results showed that the mitogenomes of these two species are 15,621 and 15,895 bp in length, with A+T contents of 78.6% and 78.4%, respectively. Both mitogenomes contain 13 protein-coding genes (PCGs), 22 transfer RNA genes (tRNAs), 2 ribosomal RNA genes (rRNAs), and a control region (CR). For all PCGs, a standard start ATN codon (ATT, ATG, or ATA) was found at the initiation site, except for ATP8, for which translation is initiated with a TTG codon. All PCGs terminate with a complete TAA or TAG stop codon, except for COX2, which terminates with an incomplete stop codon T. All tRNAs have the typical cloverleaf secondary structure, except for trnS, which has a reduced dihydrouridine arm. Furthermore, these phylogenetic analyses were reconstructed based on 13 PCGs and two rRNA genes of 73 mitochondrial genome sequences, with both the maximum likelihood (ML) and Bayesian inference (BI) methods. The obtained mitogenome sequences in this study will promote research into the classification, population genetics, and evolution of Cicadellinae insects in the future.