Using high-throughput sequencing of partial transcriptomes to understand the phylogeny of Tenebrionidae (Coleoptera)

Tenebrionidae is a morphologically and ecologically diverse family of beetles with over 20,000 species.  Currently its members are classified into 3 branches, the tenebrionoids, lagrioids, and pimelioids. To date, morphology and biogeography have not been able to resolve whether it is the pimelioids or the lagrioids that are the sister group to the tenebrionoids.  The authors’ recent attempts to resolve the phylogeny of the branches using 4 nuclear loci (Arginine kinase, CAD, wingless, and 28s) sequenced for a dense assemblage of taxa also did not yield strong bootstrap support for either hypothesis.  In this study we explore the utility of high-throughput sequencing using the Illumina platform to discover additional loci for phylogenetic inference in Tenebrionidae.  A partial transcriptomes of Coniontis obesus from the pimelioid branch will be assembled and compared with genes from the Tribolium castaneum genome.  Tribolium castaneum is currently the only species of beetle to have its genome fully sequenced and falls in the tenebrionoid branch.  The resulting pool of shared orthologs will be used to address phylogenetic questions within Tenebrionidae.