Phylogenetic analysis of Pacific salmon (genus Oncorhynchus) based on mitochondrial DNA sequence data.

Previous phylogenetic analyses of the fishes belonging to the genus Oncorhynchus based on mitochondrial DNA data have produced conflicting trees. This is especially true with respect to the relationships among the three most derived Pacific salmon species, the pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha), sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka), and chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta). Smith (Syst. Biol. 41(1): 41-57, 1992) suggested that introgression in opposite directions on either side of the Pacific ocean may account for some of the conflicting data. The ATPase 6 and ND3 mitochondrial genes were sequenced from Asian and North American representatives of several species of Pacific salmon and the aligned sequences were analyzed along with other data on these genes. Analysis of the ATPase 6 and ND3 sequence data and RFLP data gives strong support for a sister relationship between pink salmon and chum salmon.