1140 bp of cytochrome b gene were amplified and sequenced from 14 species of primitive cyprinid fishes in East Asia. Aligned with other ten cytochrome b gene sequences of cyprinid fish from Europe and North America retrieved from Gene bank, we obtained a matrix of 24 DNA sequences. A cladogram was generated by the method of Maximum likelihood for the primitive cyprinid fishes. The result indicated that subfamily Leuciscinae and Danioninae do not form a monophyletic group. In the subfamily Danioninae, Opsariichthys biden and Zacco platypus are very primitive and form a natural group and located at the root. But the genera in subfamily Danioninae are included in different groups and have not direct relationship. Among them, Aphyocypris chinensis and Yaoshanicus arcus form a monophyletic group. Tanichthys albonubes and Gobiocypris rarus have a close relation to Gobioninae. The genus Danio is far from other genera in Danioninae. In our cladogram, the genera in Leuciscinae were divided into two groups that ha
1140 bp of cytochrome b gene were amplified and sequenced from 14 species of primitive cyprinid fishes in East Asia. Aligned with other ten cytochrome b gene sequences of cyprinid fish from Europe and North America retrieved from Gene bank, we obtained a matrix of 24 DNA sequences. A cladogram was generated by the method of Maximum likelihood for the primitive cyprinid fishes. The result indicated that subfamily Leuciscinae and Danioninae do not form a monophyletic group. In the subfamily Danioninae,Opsariichthys biden andZacco platypus are very primitive and form a natural group and located at the root. But the genera in subfamily Danioninae are included in different groups and have not direct relationship. Among them,Aphyocypris chinensis andYaoshanicus arcus form a monophyletic group.Tanichthys albonubes andGobiocypris rarus have a close relation to Gobioninae. The genusDanio is far from other genera in Danioninae. In our cladogram, the genera in Leuciscinae were divided into two groups that have no direct relationship. The genera in Leuciscinae distributed in Europe, Sibera and North America, includingLeuciscus,Rutilus, Phoxinus, N. crysole, Opsopoeodus emilae, form a monophyletic group. And the Leuciscinae in southern China includingCtenopharyngodon idellus, Mylopharyngodon piceus, Squalibarbus andOchetobius elongatus have a common origination.