The first complete mitochondrial genome of the Japanese beetle Popillia japonica (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) and its phylogenetic implications for the superfamily Scarabaeoidea.

Popillia japonica is a harmful pest with a wide range of hosts, presenting particular dangers to golf courses, lawns, and pastures. Very limited molecular data for Po. japonica are available in GenBank, including only some partial nuclear gene or mitochondrial gene sequences, and acquiring more molecular information is urgent for studying the diagnosis of infestation, phylogeny, and evolution of this beetle. Herein, we characterize the complete mitochondrial genome of Po. japonica using next-generation sequencing and describe its structural features. The circular mitochondrial genome of Po. japonica is 16,541 bp in size, containing thirteen protein-coding genes (PCGs), two ribosomal RNA genes (rRNAs), twenty-two transfer RNA genes (tRNAs), and a control region. The base composition of the whole mitochondrial genome of Po. japonica is 39.00%, 9.50%, 14.80%, and 36.70% for A, G, C, and T, respectively, demonstrating high A + T content (75.70%). Phylogenetic relationships of the superfamily Scarabaeoidea show that Po. japonica and Protaetia brevitarsis form in a clade that is a sister group to Rhopaea magnicornis and Polyphylla laticollis from Melolonthinae. Cheirotonus jansoni from Melolonthinae is a sister group with Po. japonica, Protaetia brevitarsis, Rhopaea magnicornis and Polyphylla laticollis, indicating that Melolonthinae is a polyphyletic group. This is the first report of a complete mitochondrial genome of Po. japonica and it will contribute to further studies of infestation diagnosis, phylogeny, and evolution of Scarabaeoidea.