Dissertation
Mitochondrial genome evolution and molecular phylogeny of parasitic lice (infraorder: Phthiraptera)
University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland
Doctor of Philosophy, University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland
2022
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25907/00712
Abstract
Parasitic lice (infraorder Phthiraptera) have five parvorders: Amblycera, Anoplura Ischnocera, Rhynchophthirina and Trichodectera. Sucking lice are in the parvorder Anoplura and chewing lice are in the other four parvorders. Fragmented mitochondrial (mt) genome has been found in lice of all five parvorders. Anoplura, Rhynchophthirina, and Trichodectera species studied so far, all have extensively fragmented mt genomes. For Amblycera and Ischnocera, some species (e.g., pigeon lice) have fragmented mt genomes whereas others have single-chromosome mt genomes. As a shared derived character, mt genome fragmentation supported the close phylogenetic relationship among the three parvorders: Anoplura, Rhynchophthirina and Trichodectera. However, a few studies showed that mt genome fragmentation could occur independently in different lineages of parasitic lice. In this thesis, I investigated the mt genome evolution in a broader range of parasitic lice including both chewing lice and sucking lice from birds and mammals. The potential use of mt genome fragmentation in resolving phylogenetic relationships among parasitic lice was explored and discussed.
This thesis has six chapters. Chapter 1 is a literature review, in which I introduced parasitic lice and their mt genomes. In Chapter 2, I analysed the variation in mt karyotype between the macaque louse and the colobus louse (both in the genus Pedicinus) and inferred the mt karyotype of the most recent common ancestor of higher primate lice. I discovered that two of the inferred ancestral mt minichromosomes of higher primate lice merged as one in the macaque louse whereas one of the ancestral minichromosomes split into two in the colobus louse after these two species diverged from their most recent common ancestor. The findings of this chapter have been published in Fu & Dong et al. (2020).
Details
- Title
- Mitochondrial genome evolution and molecular phylogeny of parasitic lice (infraorder: Phthiraptera)
- Authors
- Yalun Dong - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, GeneCology Research Centre - Legacy
- Contributors
- Renfu Shao (Supervisor) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
- Awarding institution
- University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland
- Degree awarded
- Doctor of Philosophy
- Publisher
- University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland
- DOI
- 10.25907/00712
- Organisation Unit
- University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland; GeneCology Research Centre - Legacy; School of Science, Technology and Engineering; Centre for Bioinnovation
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 99684098802621
- Output Type
- Dissertation
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