Phylogenetic Relationships of Freshwater Fish in Vietnamese Mekong

The study focuses on the phylogeny of freshwater fish in Vietnamese Mekong, with a particular emphasis on morphological and genetic characters. Freshwater fish species were collected at 7 provinces along the Hau and Tien rivers, with a total of 11 species identified through morphological analysis. Phylogenetic relationships were constructed based on 16S and CO1 gene sequences of mitochondrial DNA using Maximum Parimony, Maximum Likelihood, and Bayesian Inference approaches. The 16S phylogeny performed similarly to the CO1 phylogeny, with the exception of the Coilia species family Engraulidae and Acantopsis family Cobotidae. The study corroborated the monophyletic status of the genus level, including Pangasius, Ompok, Acantopsis, Trichopodus, Glossogobius, Coilia, Acantopsis, and Cynoglossus. Sequence differences were found between G. circumspectus and G. olivaceus in the CO1 gene, while they were identical in the 16S gene. The current data can be used as a source for the study of biodiversity and the management of fisheries resources in the Mekong Delta in Vietnam. DNA barcoding is a new technique in the field of fish biology, offering tools for unequivocal species identification, particularly in cases where morphology alone is insufficient. The study aimed to build up phylogenetic relationships of freshwater fish in Vietnamese Mekong based on morphological and genetic characters. Freshwater fish Barcode Database is a prime access point for DNA sequences and morphological taxonomic information of freshwater fish. This combination of freshwater fish information and molecular data will provide an updated species list for Vietnam, crucial for natural resources conservation. Freshwater fish species were collected at 7 provinces along the Hau and Tien rivers, with a total of 11 species identified through morphological analysis. Phylogenetic relationships were constructed based on 16S and CO1 gene sequences of mitochondrial DNA using Maximum Parimony, Maximum Likelihood, and Bayesian Inference approaches. The study corroborated the monophyletic status of the genus level, including Pangasius, Ompok, Acantopsis, Trichopodus, Glossogobius, Coilia, Acantopsis, and Cynoglossus. The study used a combination of morphological and genetic characters to identify freshwater fish species. DNA barcoding is a new technique in the field of fish biology, offering tools for unequivocal species identification, particularly in cases where morphology alone is insufficient. The study aimed to build up phylogenetic relationships of freshwater fish in Vietnamese Mekong based on morphological and genetic characters. The study used a combination of morphological and genetic characters to identify freshwater fish species. Phylogenetic relationships were constructed based on 16S and CO1 gene sequences of mitochondrial DNA using Maximum Parimony, Maximum Likelihood, and Bayesian Inference approaches. The study corroborated the monophyletic status of the genus level, including Pangasius, Ompok, Acantopsis, Trichopodus, Glossogobius, Coilia, Acantopsis, and Cynoglossus.