Pterygoplichthys gibbiceps (Kner, 1854) is a loricariid catfish (Actinopterygii: Loricariidae) recognized as an invasive alien species introduced through the ornamental fish trade. The species has established invasive populations and has been recorded from multiple localities across Vietnam. Here, we presented the complete mitochondrial genome data of P. gibbiceps from Vietnam generated by high-throughput sequencing. The mitogenome contains 13 protein-coding genes, 22 transfer RNA genes, two ribosomal RNA genes, and a control region. Comparative analyses revealed a high degree of conservation among Pterygoplichthys mitogenomes in genome structure, gene content, gene order, and codon usage patterns. In addition, all mitochondrial protein-coding genes of P. gibbiceps exhibited Ka/Ks values below 1, indicating predominant purifying selection relative to other congeners. Phylogenetic reconstruction supported the monophyly of Pterygoplichthys and placed P. gibbiceps as an early-diverging lineage within the genus. These mitochondrial genome data provide a valuable resource for future studies on species identification, population structure, and evolutionary relationships of P. gibbiceps in Vietnam and elsewhere, and also contribute to comparative mitochondrial genomic studies in armored catfishes.
Huynh et al. (2026) studied this question.