Taxonomic position of the family Porcellanasteridae within the class Asteroidea

Abstract

The phylogenetic relationships and taxonomic position of sea stars of the family Porcellanasteridae have been a subject of debate for over a hundred years. In this paper, the methods of molecular phylogenetic analysis were used to solve these issues. The nucleotide sequences of fragments of the mitochondrial gene of subunit 1 of cytochrome oxidase (COI) and those of the 16S rRNA gene were obtained for 9 and 6 species of porcellanasterids for the first time, respectively. The phylogenetic trees including these sequences indicate the nearest relationships of the family Porcellanasteridae with the families Ctenodiscidae and Goniopectinidae, thereby supporting the validity of the allocation of these three families in the suborder Cribellina.