Genetic structuring of Pseudopus apodus (Pallas, 1775) (Sauria: Anguidae) in north Anatolia, Turkey

In this study, mitochondrial 16S rRNA and cytochrome b sequences were used to infer the genetic structure of Pseudopus apodus (Pallas, 1775) populations sampled from 40° North latitude of Turkey. Mean percent G-C contents of 47.13 and 46.66 were determined for 16S rRNA and cytochrome b datasets, respectively. Two haplotypes were found using 16S rRNA dataset, with 6 variable loci and a haplotype diversity of 0.1053, while Cytochrome b dataset consist of 10 haplotypes, with 18 variable loci and a haplotype diversity of 0.1943. Also mean genetic distance was found to be eight times higher in the cytochrome b dataset. Kimura 2-parameter genetic distance matrix was evaluated together with neighbor joining tree and median joining network in order to reveal possible divergence points in both datasets. Results indicated signs of 3 regional populations, including potential cryptic species from Digor or subspecies from Samsun and Sinop.