The complete mitochondrial genome of Sporophila nigricollis (Aves, Passeriformes).

Background: Sporophila nigricollis, popularly known as Yellow-bellied Seedeater, is a commonly trafficked bird in Brazil. This study describes the complete mitogenome of the species and its phylogenetic position.

Methods And Results: DNA sample was sequenced on MiSeq (Illumina®) sequencer. Reads were assembled to reference using Geneious. A total of 11,740 paired sequence reads were used to produce the complete mitochondrial DNA sequence with average coverage of 176x. The mitogenome was found to be circular in shape and consisted of 16,777 base pairs. The mitochondrial genome was annotated with MITOS and verified with ExPASy. Its structure contains two ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes, 22 transporter RNA (tRNA) genes, 13 protein-coding genes (PCGs) and one control region. Twelve of the 13 PCGs have ATG as start codon. Seven of the 13 PCGs contain a TAA stop codon. Most of the tRNA genes and PCGs are encoded on the heavy strand. Phylogenetic analyses were conducted with MEGA using the maximum likelihood method. Sporophila nigricollis grouped together with other Thraupidae species.

Conclusion: This study presents the first complete mitogenome of Sporophila nigricollis and can be useful for research on evolution, ecology and conservation of this species.