Abstract
Mitochondrial gene content shows extensive variation among eukaryotes, but is remarkably compact and static in bilateral animals. Mitochondrial genomes of bilaterians typically contain two rRNA, 22 tRNA, and 13 protein-coding genes. In this study, we report that the mitochondrial genomes of Antarctic fishes of the suborder Notothenioidei (Perciformes) lack two adjacent genes encoding NADH 6 dehydrogenase (ND6) and tRNAGlu. Loss of the ND6 gene is reported for the first time in an animal mitochondrial genome, and is considered an extremely rare evolutionary event. Dot blot and ND6 transcript detection analyses found no evidence of mitochondrial ND6 gene copies in heteroplasmy or of a functional ND6 gene copy in the nuclear genome, respectively. Hence, we concluded that ND6 function was lost in Antarctic notothenioids, and could be compensated for by functional changes in other proteins of the mitochondrial respiratory system.
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Acknowledgments
This work was supported by the Italian PNRA (grant to T.P.) and by the Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia of Spain (grant CGL2004-00401 to R.Z.). The authors would like to thank Rafaella Franch, Gabriella Mazzotta, Enrico Negrisolo, Lorenzo Zane and Vittorio Varotto for technical support, samples and advice, as well as Soraya Villalba for providing the adapted outline drawings in Fig. 1.
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Papetti, C., Liò, P., Rüber, L. et al. Antarctic Fish Mitochondrial Genomes Lack ND6 Gene. J Mol Evol 65, 519–528 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00239-007-9030-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00239-007-9030-z