Frequent tRNA gene translocation towards the boundaries with control regions contributes to the highly dynamic mitochondrial genome organization of the parasitic lice of mammals

Table 3 Comparison of gene content and gene arrangement in the mitochondrial minichromosomes of three Polyplax species and their most recent common ancestor (MRCA)

Inferred most recent common ancestor of Polyplax	Polyplax reclinata	Polyplax spinulosa	Polyplax asiatica
atp8-atp6	atp8-atp6	atp8-atp6	atp8-atp6
E-cob-I	E-cob-I	E-cob-I	E-cob-I
cox1-L_2(taa)	cox1-L_2(taa)	cox1-L_1(tag)	cox1-L_2(taa)
D-Y-cox2-nad6	T-D-Y-cox2-nad6-A	T-D-Y-cox2-nad6-A	D-Y-cox2-nad6
R-nad4L-P-cox3-A	R-nad4L-P-cox3	R-nad4L-P-cox3	R-nad4L-cox3-A
S_1(tct)-S_2(tga)-nad1-T-G-nad3-W	nad1-G-nad3-W	nad1-G-nad3-W	S_1(tct)-S_2(tga)-nad1-T-G-nad3-W
Q-nad2-N	Q-nad2-N	Q-nad2-N	Q-nad2-N-P
K-nad4	K-nad4	K-nad4	K-nad4-F
H-nad5-F	H-nad5-F	H-nad5-F	H-nad5
S_1(tct)-S_2(tga)-rrnS-C	S_1(tct)-S_2(tga)-rrnS-C	S_1(tct)-S_2(tga)-rrnS-C	rrnS-C
M-L_1(tag)-rrnL-V	M-L_1(tag)-rrnL-V	M-L_2(taa)-rrnL-V	M-L_1(tag)-rrnL-V

Notes: The position of S_1(tct)-S_2(tga) gene cluster in the ancestral mitochondrial karyotype is either upstream from rrnS or, equally parsimoniously, downstream from nad1. The eight tRNA genes that have changed their positions and/or orientation in the three Polyplax species since their divergence from their MRCA are in bold

ISSN: 1471-2164