Low Genetic Diversity and Shallow Population Structure of the Japanese Halfbeak Hyporhamphus Sajori Revealed from Mitochondrial DNA in the Northeast Asia

Abstract

This study was conducted to know the genetic diversity and population structure of Japanese halfbeak (Hyporhamphus sajori) in the Northeast Asia, using mitochondrial DNA control region. In the present study, a total of 70 individuals were collected from three locations of China (Liaoning), Korea (Tongyeong) and Japan (Wakasa Bay), and 47 individuals sequences from three locations of Japan (Wakasa Bay, Toyama Bay and Mikawa Bay) were downloaded from genbank. A total of 7 haplotypes were identified with 7 polymorphic sites from 358 bp length sequences. Haplotype and nucleotide diversity were very low and ranged from 0 to 0.295±0.156 and 0 to 0.0009±0.0011, respectively. Ancestral haplotype was shared by 94% individuals. An extremely low haplotype and nucleotide diversity, and starlike minimum spanning tree indicated that the species have undergone a recent population expansion after bottleneck. Pairwise FST values were low and there was no significant differences among populations suggesting a gene flow among the populations. Dispersal of the eggs with the aid of drifting seaweed and currents might be the major responsible factor for the genetic homogeneity.