Molecular phylogeny of the Neoplecostominae and Hypoptopomatinae (Siluriformes: Loricariidae) using multiple genes

A phylogenetic analysis is provided for representatives of more than one hundred species of the catfish family Loricariidae, including nearly all genera of the subfamilies Neoplecostominae and Hypoptopomatinae. This analysis is based on fragments of the subunit 1 of the cytochrome c oxidase gene (COI), the recombination activating genes 1 (RAG1) and 2 (RAG2), and the F-Reticulon 4 gene. We obtained an alignment of 4678 contiguous nucleotides for 136 species of 50 loricariid genera from five loricariid subfamilies, and ten outgroup species from five loricarioid families. Our results from Maximum Parsimony, Maximum Likelihood, and Bayesian analyses show the following set of interrelationships ((((Hypoptopomatinae, Neoplecostominae) Hypostominae), Loricariinae) Delturinae). However, neither Hypoptopomatinae nor Neoplecostominae were recovered as monophyletic groups. A previously hypothesized monophyly of Hypoptopomatini and Otothyrini was refuted. Furthermore, the genera Pareiorhaphis, Pareiorhina, Hisonotus and Parotocinclus were recovered as polyphyletic.

Research highlights► Largest loricariid phylogeny in number of species and basepairs published so far. ► Combined analyses of sequences from three nuclear and one mitochondrial genes. ► Together, Neoplecostominae and Hypoptopomatinae form a monophyletic group.