1
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Liu H, Steenwyk JL, Zhou X, Schultz DT, Kocot KM, Shen XX, Rokas A, Li Y. A taxon-rich and genome-scale phylogeny of Opisthokonta. PLoS Biol 2024; 22:e3002794. [PMID: 39283949 PMCID: PMC11426530 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3002794] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2024] [Revised: 09/26/2024] [Accepted: 08/07/2024] [Indexed: 09/27/2024] Open
Abstract
Ancient divergences within Opisthokonta-a major lineage that includes organisms in the kingdoms Animalia, Fungi, and their unicellular relatives-remain contentious. To assess progress toward a genome-scale Opisthokonta phylogeny, we conducted the most taxon rich phylogenomic analysis using sets of genes inferred with different orthology inference methods and established the geological timeline of Opisthokonta diversification. We also conducted sensitivity analysis by subsampling genes or taxa from the full data matrix based on filtering criteria previously shown to improve phylogenomic inference. We found that approximately 85% of internal branches were congruent across data matrices and the approaches used. Notably, the use of different orthology inference methods was a substantial contributor to the observed incongruence: analyses using the same set of orthologs showed high congruence of 97% to 98%, whereas different sets of orthologs resulted in somewhat lower congruence (87% to 91%). Examination of unicellular Holozoa relationships suggests that the instability observed across varying gene sets may stem from weak phylogenetic signals. Our results provide a comprehensive Opisthokonta phylogenomic framework that will be useful for illuminating ancient evolutionary episodes concerning the origin and diversification of the 2 major eukaryotic kingdoms and emphasize the importance of investigating effects of orthology inference on phylogenetic analyses to resolve ancient divergences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hongyue Liu
- Institute of Marine Science and Technology, Shandong University, Qingdao, China
- Laboratory for Marine Biology and Biotechnology, Qingdao Marine Science and Technology Center, Qingdao, China
| | - Jacob L Steenwyk
- Howards Hughes Medical Institute and the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, California, United States of America
| | - Xiaofan Zhou
- Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Microbial Signals and Disease Control, Integrative Microbiology Research Centre, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Darrin T Schultz
- Department of Neuroscience and Developmental Biology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Department of Biomolecular Engineering, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, California, United States of America
- Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, Moss Landing, California, United States of America
| | - Kevin M Kocot
- University of Alabama, Department of Biological Sciences & Alabama Museum of Natural History, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States of America
| | - Xing-Xing Shen
- Institute of Insect Sciences and Centre for Evolutionary and Organismal Biology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Antonis Rokas
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
- Vanderbilt Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
| | - Yuanning Li
- Institute of Marine Science and Technology, Shandong University, Qingdao, China
- Laboratory for Marine Biology and Biotechnology, Qingdao Marine Science and Technology Center, Qingdao, China
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2
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Phillips JE, Zheng Y, Pan D. Assembling a Hippo: the evolutionary emergence of an animal developmental signaling pathway. Trends Biochem Sci 2024; 49:681-692. [PMID: 38729842 PMCID: PMC11316659 DOI: 10.1016/j.tibs.2024.04.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2023] [Revised: 03/25/2024] [Accepted: 04/17/2024] [Indexed: 05/12/2024]
Abstract
Decades of work in developmental genetics has given us a deep mechanistic understanding of the fundamental signaling pathways underlying animal development. However, little is known about how these pathways emerged and changed over evolutionary time. Here, we review our current understanding of the evolutionary emergence of the Hippo pathway, a conserved signaling pathway that regulates tissue size in animals. This pathway has deep evolutionary roots, emerging piece by piece in the unicellular ancestors of animals, with a complete core pathway predating the origin of animals. Recent functional studies in close unicellular relatives of animals and early-branching animals suggest an ancestral function of the Hippo pathway in cytoskeletal regulation, which was subsequently co-opted to regulate proliferation and animal tissue size.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan E Phillips
- Department of Physiology, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA.
| | - Yonggang Zheng
- Department of Physiology, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
| | - Duojia Pan
- Department of Physiology, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA.
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3
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Kollmar M, Welz T, Ravi A, Kaufmann T, Alzahofi N, Hatje K, Alghamdi A, Kim J, Briggs DA, Samol-Wolf A, Pylypenko O, Hume AN, Burkhardt P, Faix J, Kerkhoff E. Actomyosin organelle functions of SPIRE actin nucleators precede animal evolution. Commun Biol 2024; 7:832. [PMID: 38977899 PMCID: PMC11231147 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-024-06458-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2023] [Accepted: 06/14/2024] [Indexed: 07/10/2024] Open
Abstract
An important question in cell biology is how cytoskeletal proteins evolved and drove the development of novel structures and functions. Here we address the origin of SPIRE actin nucleators. Mammalian SPIREs work with RAB GTPases, formin (FMN)-subgroup actin assembly proteins and class-5 myosin (MYO5) motors to transport organelles along actin filaments towards the cell membrane. However, the origin and extent of functional conservation of SPIRE among species is unknown. Our sequence searches show that SPIRE exist throughout holozoans (animals and their closest single-celled relatives), but not other eukaryotes. SPIRE from unicellular holozoans (choanoflagellate), interacts with RAB, FMN and MYO5 proteins, nucleates actin filaments and complements mammalian SPIRE function in organelle transport. Meanwhile SPIRE and MYO5 proteins colocalise to organelles in Salpingoeca rosetta choanoflagellates. Based on these observations we propose that SPIRE originated in unicellular ancestors of animals providing an actin-myosin driven exocytic transport mechanism that may have contributed to the evolution of complex multicellular animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Kollmar
- Group Systems Biology of Motor Proteins, Department of NMR-based Structural Biology, Max-Planck-Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Göttingen, Germany.
| | - Tobias Welz
- Molecular Cell Biology Laboratory, Department of Neurology, University Hospital Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany
| | - Aishwarya Ravi
- Michael Sars Centre, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Thomas Kaufmann
- Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
| | - Noura Alzahofi
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK
- Biology Department, College of Science, Taibah University, Medina, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
| | - Klas Hatje
- Group Systems Biology of Motor Proteins, Department of NMR-based Structural Biology, Max-Planck-Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Göttingen, Germany
- Roche Pharmaceutical Research and Early Development, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Roche Innovation Center Basel, F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd., Basel, Switzerland
| | - Asmahan Alghamdi
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK
- Department of Biology, College of Sciences, Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
| | - Jiyu Kim
- Molecular Cell Biology Laboratory, Department of Neurology, University Hospital Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany
- Department of Anatomy, University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
| | - Deborah A Briggs
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK
| | - Annette Samol-Wolf
- Molecular Cell Biology Laboratory, Department of Neurology, University Hospital Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany
| | - Olena Pylypenko
- Dynamics of Intra-Cellular Organization, Institute Curie, PSL Research University, CNRS UMR144, Paris, France
| | - Alistair N Hume
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK
| | | | - Jan Faix
- Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
| | - Eugen Kerkhoff
- Molecular Cell Biology Laboratory, Department of Neurology, University Hospital Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany.
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4
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Lavrov DV, Diaz MC, Maldonado M, Morrow CC, Perez T, Pomponi SA, Thacker RW. Phylomitogenomics bolsters the high-level classification of Demospongiae (phylum Porifera). PLoS One 2023; 18:e0287281. [PMID: 38048310 PMCID: PMC10695373 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0287281] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2023] [Accepted: 11/15/2023] [Indexed: 12/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Class Demospongiae is the largest in the phylum Porifera (Sponges) and encompasses nearly 8,000 accepted species in three subclasses: Keratosa, Verongimorpha, and Heteroscleromorpha. Subclass Heteroscleromorpha contains ∼90% of demosponge species and is subdivided into 17 orders. The higher level classification of demosponges underwent major revision as the result of nearly three decades of molecular studies. However, because most of the previous molecular work only utilized partial data from a small number of nuclear and mitochondrial (mt) genes, this classification scheme needs to be tested by larger datasets. Here we compiled a mt dataset for 136 demosponge species-including 64 complete or nearly complete and six partial mt-genome sequences determined or assembled for this study-and used it to test phylogenetic relationships among Demospongiae in general and Heteroscleromorpha in particular. We also investigated the phylogenetic position of Myceliospongia araneosa, a highly unusual demosponge without spicules and spongin fibers, currently classified as Demospongiae incertae sedis, for which molecular data were not available. Our results support the previously inferred sister-group relationship between Heteroscleromorpha and Keratosa + Verongimorpha and suggest five main clades within Heteroscleromorpha: Clade C0 composed of order Haplosclerida; Clade C1 composed of Scopalinida, Sphaerocladina, and Spongillida; Clade C2 composed of Axinellida, Biemnida, Bubarida; Clade C3 composed of Tetractinellida; and Clade C4 composed of Agelasida, Clionaida, Desmacellida, Merliida, Suberitida, Poecilosclerida, Polymastiida, and Tethyida. The inferred relationships among these clades were (C0(C1(C2(C3+C4)))). Analysis of molecular data from M. araneosa placed it in the C3 clade as a sister taxon to the highly skeletonized tetractinellids Microscleroderma sp. and Leiodermatium sp. Molecular clock analysis dated divergences among the major clades in Heteroscleromorpha from the Cambrian to the Early Silurian, the origins of most heteroscleromorph orders in the middle Paleozoic, and the most basal splits within these orders around the Paleozoic to Mesozoic transition. Overall, the results of this study are mostly congruent with the accepted classification of Heteroscleromorpha, but add temporal perspective and new resolution to phylogenetic relationships within this subclass.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dennis V. Lavrov
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, United States of America
| | - Maria C. Diaz
- Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute, Florida Atlantic University, Fort Pierce, Florida, United States of America
- Museo Marino de Margarita, Boca de Río, Nueva Esparta, Venezuela
| | - Manuel Maldonado
- Department of Marine Ecology, Centro de Estudios Avanzados de Blanes (CEAB-CSIC), Girona, Spain
| | - Christine C. Morrow
- Zoology Department, School of Natural Sciences & Ryan Institute, NUI Galway, University Road, Galway, Ireland
- Ireland and Queen’s University Marine Laboratory, Portaferry, Northern Ireland
| | - Thierry Perez
- Institut Méditerranéen de la Biodiversité et d’Ecologie marine et continentale (IMBE), CNRS, Aix-Marseille Université, IRD, Avignon Université City, Provence, France
| | - Shirley A. Pomponi
- Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute, Florida Atlantic University, Fort Pierce, Florida, United States of America
| | - Robert W. Thacker
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, United States of America
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa, Panama City, Republic of Panama
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5
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Palmgren M. Evolution of the sodium pump. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA. MOLECULAR CELL RESEARCH 2023; 1870:119511. [PMID: 37301269 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbamcr.2023.119511] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2023] [Revised: 05/16/2023] [Accepted: 06/02/2023] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Eukaryotic plasma membranes (PMs) are energized by electrogenic P-type ATPases that generate either Na+ or H+ motive forces to drive Na+ and H+ dependent transport processes, respectively. For this purpose, animal rely on Na+/K+-ATPases whereas fungi and plants employ PM H+-ATPases. Prokaryotes, on the other hand, depend on H+ or Na+-motive electron transport complexes to energize their cell membranes. This raises the question as to why and when electrogenic Na+ and H+ pumps evolved? Here it is shown that prokaryotic Na+/K+-ATPases have near perfect conservation of binding sites involved in coordination of three Na+ and two K+ ions. Such pumps are rare in Eubacteria but are common in methanogenic Archaea where they often are found together with P-type putative PM H+-ATPases. With some exceptions, Na+/K+-ATPases and PM H+-ATPases are found everywhere in the eukaryotic tree of life, but never together in animals, fungi and land plants. It is hypothesized that Na+/K+-ATPases and PM H+-ATPases evolved in methanogenic Archaea to support the bioenergetics of these ancestral organisms, which can utilize both H+ and Na+ as energy currencies. Both pumps must have been simultaneously present in the first eukaryotic cell, but during diversification of the major eukaryotic kingdoms, and at the time animals diverged from fungi, animals kept Na+/K+-ATPases but lost PM H+-ATPases. At the same evolutionary branch point, fungi did loose Na+/K+-ATPases, and their role was taken over by PM H+-ATPases. An independent but similar scenery emerged during terrestrialization of plants: they lost Na+/K+-ATPases but kept PM H+-ATPases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael Palmgren
- Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Thorvaldsensvej 40, DK-1871 Frederiksberg C, Denmark.
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6
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Uchida M, Konishi T, Fujigasaki A, Kita K, Arie T, Teraoka T, Kanda Y, Mori M, Arazoe T, Kamakura T. Dysfunctional Pro1 leads to female sterility in rice blast fungi. iScience 2023; 26:107020. [PMID: 37416480 PMCID: PMC10320130 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.107020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2023] [Revised: 04/20/2023] [Accepted: 05/30/2023] [Indexed: 07/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Although sexual reproduction is widespread in eukaryotes, some fungal species can only reproduce asexually. In the rice blast fungus Pyricularia (Magnaporthe) oryzae, several isolates from the region of origin retain mating ability, but most isolates are female sterile. Therefore, female fertility may have been lost during its spread from the origin. Here, we show that functional mutations of Pro1, a global transcriptional regulator of mating-related genes in filamentous fungi, is one cause of loss of female fertility in this fungus. We identified the mutation of Pro1 by backcrossing analysis between female-fertile and female-sterile isolates. The dysfunctional Pro1 did not affect the infection processes but conidial release was increased. Furthermore, various mutations in Pro1 were detected in geographically distant P. oryzae, including pandemic isolates of wheat blast fungus. These results provide the first evidence that loss of female fertility may be advantageous to the life cycle of some plant pathogenic fungi.
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Affiliation(s)
- Momotaka Uchida
- Department of Applied Biological Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, Tokyo University of Science, 2641 Yamazaki, Noda, Chiba 278-8510, Japan
| | - Takahiro Konishi
- Department of Applied Biological Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, Tokyo University of Science, 2641 Yamazaki, Noda, Chiba 278-8510, Japan
| | - Ayaka Fujigasaki
- Department of Applied Biological Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, Tokyo University of Science, 2641 Yamazaki, Noda, Chiba 278-8510, Japan
| | - Kohtetsu Kita
- Department of Applied Biological Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, Tokyo University of Science, 2641 Yamazaki, Noda, Chiba 278-8510, Japan
| | - Tsutomu Arie
- United Graduate School of Agricultural Science, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology (TUAT), 3-5-8 Saiwai-cho, Fuchu, Tokyo 183-0054, Japan
| | - Tohru Teraoka
- United Graduate School of Agricultural Science, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology (TUAT), 3-5-8 Saiwai-cho, Fuchu, Tokyo 183-0054, Japan
| | - Yasukazu Kanda
- Division of Plant Molecular Regulation Research, Institute of Agrobiological Sciences, NARO (NIAS), 2-1-2 Kan-nondai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8602, Japan
| | - Masaki Mori
- Division of Plant Molecular Regulation Research, Institute of Agrobiological Sciences, NARO (NIAS), 2-1-2 Kan-nondai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8602, Japan
| | - Takayuki Arazoe
- Department of Applied Biological Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, Tokyo University of Science, 2641 Yamazaki, Noda, Chiba 278-8510, Japan
| | - Takashi Kamakura
- Department of Applied Biological Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, Tokyo University of Science, 2641 Yamazaki, Noda, Chiba 278-8510, Japan
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7
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Rouhana L, Edgar A, Hugosson F, Dountcheva V, Martindale MQ, Ryan JF. Cytoplasmic Polyadenylation Is an Ancestral Hallmark of Early Development in Animals. Mol Biol Evol 2023; 40:msad137. [PMID: 37288606 PMCID: PMC10284499 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msad137] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2022] [Revised: 04/18/2023] [Accepted: 06/05/2023] [Indexed: 06/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Differential regulation of gene expression has produced the astonishing diversity of life on Earth. Understanding the origin and evolution of mechanistic innovations for control of gene expression is therefore integral to evolutionary and developmental biology. Cytoplasmic polyadenylation is the biochemical extension of polyadenosine at the 3'-end of cytoplasmic mRNAs. This process regulates the translation of specific maternal transcripts and is mediated by the Cytoplasmic Polyadenylation Element-Binding Protein family (CPEBs). Genes that code for CPEBs are amongst a very few that are present in animals but missing in nonanimal lineages. Whether cytoplasmic polyadenylation is present in non-bilaterian animals (i.e., sponges, ctenophores, placozoans, and cnidarians) remains unknown. We have conducted phylogenetic analyses of CPEBs, and our results show that CPEB1 and CPEB2 subfamilies originated in the animal stem lineage. Our assessment of expression in the sea anemone, Nematostella vectensis (Cnidaria), and the comb jelly, Mnemiopsis leidyi (Ctenophora), demonstrates that maternal expression of CPEB1 and the catalytic subunit of the cytoplasmic polyadenylation machinery (GLD2) is an ancient feature that is conserved across animals. Furthermore, our measurements of poly(A)-tail elongation reveal that key targets of cytoplasmic polyadenylation are shared between vertebrates, cnidarians, and ctenophores, indicating that this mechanism orchestrates a regulatory network that is conserved throughout animal evolution. We postulate that cytoplasmic polyadenylation through CPEBs was a fundamental innovation that contributed to animal evolution from unicellular life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Labib Rouhana
- Department of Biology, University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Allison Edgar
- Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience, University of Florida, St. Augustine, FL, USA
| | - Fredrik Hugosson
- Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience, University of Florida, St. Augustine, FL, USA
| | - Valeria Dountcheva
- Department of Biology, University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Mark Q Martindale
- Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience, University of Florida, St. Augustine, FL, USA
- Department of Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Joseph F Ryan
- Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience, University of Florida, St. Augustine, FL, USA
- Department of Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
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8
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Schultz DT, Haddock SHD, Bredeson JV, Green RE, Simakov O, Rokhsar DS. Ancient gene linkages support ctenophores as sister to other animals. Nature 2023; 618:110-117. [PMID: 37198475 PMCID: PMC10232365 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-05936-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 83] [Impact Index Per Article: 83.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2022] [Accepted: 03/09/2023] [Indexed: 05/19/2023]
Abstract
A central question in evolutionary biology is whether sponges or ctenophores (comb jellies) are the sister group to all other animals. These alternative phylogenetic hypotheses imply different scenarios for the evolution of complex neural systems and other animal-specific traits1-6. Conventional phylogenetic approaches based on morphological characters and increasingly extensive gene sequence collections have not been able to definitively answer this question7-11. Here we develop chromosome-scale gene linkage, also known as synteny, as a phylogenetic character for resolving this question12. We report new chromosome-scale genomes for a ctenophore and two marine sponges, and for three unicellular relatives of animals (a choanoflagellate, a filasterean amoeba and an ichthyosporean) that serve as outgroups for phylogenetic analysis. We find ancient syntenies that are conserved between animals and their close unicellular relatives. Ctenophores and unicellular eukaryotes share ancestral metazoan patterns, whereas sponges, bilaterians, and cnidarians share derived chromosomal rearrangements. Conserved syntenic characters unite sponges with bilaterians, cnidarians, and placozoans in a monophyletic clade to the exclusion of ctenophores, placing ctenophores as the sister group to all other animals. The patterns of synteny shared by sponges, bilaterians, and cnidarians are the result of rare and irreversible chromosome fusion-and-mixing events that provide robust and unambiguous phylogenetic support for the ctenophore-sister hypothesis. These findings provide a new framework for resolving deep, recalcitrant phylogenetic problems and have implications for our understanding of animal evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Darrin T Schultz
- Department of Neuroscience and Developmental Biology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
- Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, Moss Landing, CA, USA.
- Department of Biomolecular Engineering and Bioinformatics, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA, USA.
| | - Steven H D Haddock
- Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, Moss Landing, CA, USA
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Jessen V Bredeson
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Richard E Green
- Department of Biomolecular Engineering and Bioinformatics, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Oleg Simakov
- Department of Neuroscience and Developmental Biology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
| | - Daniel S Rokhsar
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA.
- Molecular Genetics Unit, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, Onna, Japan.
- Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, San Francisco, CA, USA.
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9
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Zhang P, Zhu Y, Guo Q, Li J, Zhan X, Yu H, Xie N, Tan H, Lundholm N, Garcia-Cuetos L, Martin MD, Subirats MA, Su YH, Ruiz-Trillo I, Martindale MQ, Yu JK, Gilbert MTP, Zhang G, Li Q. On the origin and evolution of RNA editing in metazoans. Cell Rep 2023; 42:112112. [PMID: 36795564 PMCID: PMC9989829 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.112112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 25.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2022] [Revised: 11/28/2022] [Accepted: 01/30/2023] [Indexed: 02/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Extensive adenosine-to-inosine (A-to-I) editing of nuclear-transcribed mRNAs is the hallmark of metazoan transcriptional regulation. Here, by profiling the RNA editomes of 22 species that cover major groups of Holozoa, we provide substantial evidence supporting A-to-I mRNA editing as a regulatory innovation originating in the last common ancestor of extant metazoans. This ancient biochemistry process is preserved in most extant metazoan phyla and primarily targets endogenous double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) formed by evolutionarily young repeats. We also find intermolecular pairing of sense-antisense transcripts as an important mechanism for forming dsRNA substrates for A-to-I editing in some but not all lineages. Likewise, recoding editing is rarely shared across lineages but preferentially targets genes involved in neural and cytoskeleton systems in bilaterians. We conclude that metazoan A-to-I editing might first emerge as a safeguard mechanism against repeat-derived dsRNA and was later co-opted into diverse biological processes due to its mutagenic nature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pei Zhang
- BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China; Section for Ecology and Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | | | - Qunfei Guo
- BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China; College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Ji Li
- BGI Research-Wuhan, BGI, Wuhan 430074, China
| | | | - Hao Yu
- BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China
| | - Nianxia Xie
- BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China; College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | | | - Nina Lundholm
- Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, 1353 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Lydia Garcia-Cuetos
- Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, 1353 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Michael D Martin
- Department of Natural History, NTNU University Museum, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), 7491 Trondheim, Norway; Center for Theoretical Evolutionary Genomics, Department of Integrative Biology, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | | | - Yi-Hsien Su
- Institute of Cellular and Organismic Biology, Academia Sinica, Taipei 11529, Taiwan
| | - Iñaki Ruiz-Trillo
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, UPF-CSIC Barcelona, 08003 Barcelona, Spain; ICREA, Passeig Lluís Companys 23, 08010 Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain; Departament de Genètica, Microbiologia i Estadística, Facultat de Bilogia, Universitat de Barcelona (UB), 08028 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Mark Q Martindale
- The Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience, University of Florida, St. Augustine, FL 32080, USA
| | - Jr-Kai Yu
- Institute of Cellular and Organismic Biology, Academia Sinica, Taipei 11529, Taiwan; Marine Research Station, Institute of Cellular and Organismic Biology, Academia Sinica, Yilan 26242, Taiwan
| | - M Thomas P Gilbert
- Department of Natural History, NTNU University Museum, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), 7491 Trondheim, Norway; Center for Evolutionary Hologenomics, The GLOBE Institute, University of Copenhagen, 1353 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Guojie Zhang
- Center of Evolutionary and Organismal Biology, & Women's Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China; Liangzhu Laboratory, Zhejiang University Medical Center, 1369 West Wenyi Road, Hangzhou 311121, China; State Key Laboratory of Genetic Resources and Evolution, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650223, China; Villum Centre for Biodiversity Genomics, Section for Ecology and Evolution, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark.
| | - Qiye Li
- BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China; College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.
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10
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Mitsi K, Richter DJ, Arroyo AS, López-Escardó D, Antó M, Oterino AG, Ruiz-Trillo I. Taxonomic composition, community structure and molecular novelty of microeukaryotes in a temperate oligomesotrophic lake as revealed by metabarcoding. Sci Rep 2023; 13:3119. [PMID: 36813945 PMCID: PMC9947120 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-30228-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2022] [Accepted: 02/18/2023] [Indexed: 02/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Microbial eukaryotes are diverse and ecologically important organisms, yet sampling constraints have hindered the understanding of their distribution and diversity in freshwater ecosystems. Metabarcoding has provided a powerful complement to traditional limnological studies, revealing an unprecedented diversity of protists in freshwater environments. Here, we aim to expand our knowledge of the ecology and diversity of protists in lacustrine ecosystems by targeting the V4 hypervariable region of the 18S rRNA gene in water column, sediment and biofilm samples collected from Sanabria Lake (Spain) and surrounding freshwater ecosystems. Sanabria is a temperate lake, which are relatively understudied by metabarcoding in comparison to alpine and polar lakes. The phylogenetic diversity of microbial eukaryotes detected in Sanabria spans all currently recognized eukaryotic supergroups, with Stramenopiles being the most abundant and diverse supergroup in all sampling sites. Parasitic microeukaryotes account for 21% of the total protist ASVs identified in our study and were dominated by Chytridiomycota, both in terms of richness and abundance, in all sampling sites. Sediments, biofilms and water column samples harbour distinct microbial communities. Phylogenetic placement of poorly assigned and abundant ASVs indicates molecular novelty inside Rhodophyta, Bigyra, early-branching Nucletmycea and Apusomonadida. In addition, we report the first freshwater incidence of the previously exclusively marine genera Abeoforma and Sphaeroforma. Our results contribute to a deeper understanding of microeukaryotic communities in freshwater ecosystems, and provide the first molecular reference for future biomonitoring surveys in Sanabria Lake.
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Affiliation(s)
- Konstantina Mitsi
- Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Passeig Marítim de La Barceloneta, 37-49, 08033, Barcelona, Spain.
| | - Daniel J. Richter
- grid.507636.10000 0004 0424 5398Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Passeig Marítim de La Barceloneta, 37-49, 08033 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Alicia S. Arroyo
- grid.507636.10000 0004 0424 5398Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Passeig Marítim de La Barceloneta, 37-49, 08033 Barcelona, Spain
| | - David López-Escardó
- grid.418218.60000 0004 1793 765XInstitut de Ciències del Mar (CSIC), Passeig Marítim de La Barceloneta, 37-49, 08033 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Meritxell Antó
- grid.507636.10000 0004 0424 5398Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Passeig Marítim de La Barceloneta, 37-49, 08033 Barcelona, Spain
| | | | - Iñaki Ruiz-Trillo
- grid.507636.10000 0004 0424 5398Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Passeig Marítim de La Barceloneta, 37-49, 08033 Barcelona, Spain ,grid.425902.80000 0000 9601 989XInstitució Catalana de Recerca I Estudis Avançats (ICREA), Passeig Lluís Companys, 23, 08010 Barcelona, Spain
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11
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Fonseca C, Mendonça Filho JG, Reolid M, Duarte LV, de Oliveira AD, Souza JT, Lézin C. First putative occurrence in the fossil record of choanoflagellates, the sister group of Metazoa. Sci Rep 2023; 13:1242. [PMID: 36690681 PMCID: PMC9870899 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-26972-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2022] [Accepted: 12/22/2022] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Choanoflagellates are microeukaryotes that inhabit freshwater and marine environments and have long been regarded as the closest living relatives of Metazoa. Knowledge on the evolution of choanoflagellates is key for the understanding of the ancestry of animals, and although molecular clock evidence suggests the appearance of choanoflagellates by late Neoproterozoic, no specimens of choanoflagellates are known to occur in the fossil record. Here the first putative occurrence of choanoflagellates in sediments from the Cretaceous (Cenomanian-Turonian) is described by means of several cutting-edge petrographic techniques, and a discussion of its paleoenvironmental significance is performed. Furthermore, their placement in the organic matter classification systems is argued, with a placement in the Zoomorph Subgroup (Palynomorph Group) of the dispersed organic matter classification system being proposed. Regarding the ICCP System 1994, incorporation of choanoflagellates is, at a first glance, straightforward within the liptinite group, but the definition of a new maceral may be necessary to accommodate the genetic origin of these organisms. While modern choanoflagellates may bring light to the cellular foundations of animal origins, this discovery may provide an older term of comparison to their extant specimens and provide guidelines for possible identification of these organic components in other locations and ages throughout the geological record.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carolina Fonseca
- Laboratório de Palinofácies e Fácies Orgânica (LAFO), Departamento de Geologia, Instituto de Geociências, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Av. Athos da Silveira, 274, prédio do CCMN, sala J1020, Campus Ilha do Fundão, Cidade Universitária, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, CEP 21.949-900, Brazil.
- Universidade de Coimbra, MARE - Centro de Ciências do Mare do Ambiente, ARNET - Aquatic Research Network, Departamento de Ciências da Terra, Rua Sílvio Lima, 3030-790, Coimbra, Portugal.
| | - João Graciano Mendonça Filho
- Laboratório de Palinofácies e Fácies Orgânica (LAFO), Departamento de Geologia, Instituto de Geociências, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Av. Athos da Silveira, 274, prédio do CCMN, sala J1020, Campus Ilha do Fundão, Cidade Universitária, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, CEP 21.949-900, Brazil
| | - Matías Reolid
- Departamento de Geología and CEACTEMA, Universidad de Jaén, Campus Las Lagunillas sn, 23071, Jaén, Spain
| | - Luís V Duarte
- Universidade de Coimbra, MARE - Centro de Ciências do Mare do Ambiente, ARNET - Aquatic Research Network, Departamento de Ciências da Terra, Rua Sílvio Lima, 3030-790, Coimbra, Portugal
| | - António Donizeti de Oliveira
- Laboratório de Palinofácies e Fácies Orgânica (LAFO), Departamento de Geologia, Instituto de Geociências, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Av. Athos da Silveira, 274, prédio do CCMN, sala J1020, Campus Ilha do Fundão, Cidade Universitária, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, CEP 21.949-900, Brazil
| | - Jaqueline Torres Souza
- Laboratório de Palinofácies e Fácies Orgânica (LAFO), Departamento de Geologia, Instituto de Geociências, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Av. Athos da Silveira, 274, prédio do CCMN, sala J1020, Campus Ilha do Fundão, Cidade Universitária, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, CEP 21.949-900, Brazil
| | - Carine Lézin
- Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier, OMP, GET (Géosciences Environnement Toulouse), CNRS, IRD, 14 Avenue Édouard Belin, 31400, Toulouse, France
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12
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Bajgar A, Krejčová G. On the origin of the functional versatility of macrophages. Front Physiol 2023; 14:1128984. [PMID: 36909237 PMCID: PMC9998073 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2023.1128984] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2022] [Accepted: 02/07/2023] [Indexed: 02/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Macrophages represent the most functionally versatile cells in the animal body. In addition to recognizing and destroying pathogens, macrophages remove senescent and exhausted cells, promote wound healing, and govern tissue and metabolic homeostasis. In addition, many specialized populations of tissue-resident macrophages exhibit highly specialized functions essential for the function of specific organs. Sometimes, however, macrophages cease to perform their protective function and their seemingly incomprehensible response to certain stimuli leads to pathology. In this study, we address the question of the origin of the functional versatility of macrophages. To this end, we have searched for the evolutionary origin of macrophages themselves and for the emergence of their characteristic properties. We hypothesize that many of the characteristic features of proinflammatory macrophages evolved in the unicellular ancestors of animals, and that the functional repertoire of macrophage-like amoebocytes further expanded with the evolution of multicellularity and the increasing complexity of tissues and organ systems. We suggest that the entire repertoire of macrophage functions evolved by repurposing and diversification of basic functions that evolved early in the evolution of metazoans under conditions barely comparable to that in tissues of multicellular organisms. We believe that by applying this perspective, we may find an explanation for the otherwise counterintuitive behavior of macrophages in many human pathologies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam Bajgar
- Faculty of Science, Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, University of South Bohemia, Ceske Budejovice, Czechia.,Biology Centre, Institute of Entomology, Academy of Sciences, Ceske Budejovice, Czechia
| | - Gabriela Krejčová
- Faculty of Science, Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, University of South Bohemia, Ceske Budejovice, Czechia.,Biology Centre, Institute of Entomology, Academy of Sciences, Ceske Budejovice, Czechia
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13
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A comparative study indicates vertical inheritance and horizontal gene transfer of arsenic resistance-related genes in eukaryotes. Mol Phylogenet Evol 2022; 173:107479. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2022.107479] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2021] [Revised: 02/10/2022] [Accepted: 04/05/2022] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
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14
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Booth DS, King N. The history of Salpingoeca rosetta as a model for reconstructing animal origins. Curr Top Dev Biol 2022; 147:73-91. [PMID: 35337467 DOI: 10.1016/bs.ctdb.2022.01.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Choanoflagellates, the closest living relatives of animals, have the potential to reveal the genetic and cell biological foundations of complex multicellular development in animals. Here we describe the history of research on the choanoflagellate Salpingoeca rosetta. From its original isolation in 2000 to the establishment of CRISPR-mediated genome editing in 2020, S. rosetta provides an instructive case study in the establishment of a new model organism.
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Affiliation(s)
- David S Booth
- Chan Zuckerberg Biohub and Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California, San Francisco, CA, United States.
| | - Nicole King
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA, United States.
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15
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Zhang S, Wang S, Fang Z, Lang BF, Zhang YJ. Characterization of the mitogenome of Gongronella sp. w5 reveals substantial variation in Mucoromycota. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2022; 106:2587-2601. [PMID: 35318523 DOI: 10.1007/s00253-022-11880-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2022] [Revised: 02/24/2022] [Accepted: 03/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Gongronella is a genus of fungi in Mucorales (Mucoromycota). Some of its members have important biotechnological applications, but until now, not a single mitogenome has been characterized in Gongronella. Here, we present the complete mitogenome assembly of Gongronella sp. w5, a soil isolate known to interact with plants and several fungi. Its 36,593-bp circular mitogenome encodes the large and small subunit rRNAs, 14 standard mitochondrial proteins, 24 tRNAs, three free-standing ORF proteins, and the RNA subunit of RNase P (rnpB). These genes arrange in an order novel to known fungal mitogenomes. Three group I introns are present in the cob, cox1, and nad5 genes, respectively, and they are probably acquired by horizontal gene transfer. Phylogenetic analysis based on mitochondrion-encoded proteins supports the grouping of Gongronella sp. w5 with Absidia glauca, forming the Cunninghamellaceae clade within Mucoromycota. Gongronella and most other Mucoromycota species are predicted to use the standard genetic code in mitochondrial translation, rather than code 4 assigned by GenBank. A comparison among seven publicly available mitogenomes in Mucoromycota reveals the presence of the same 14 typical protein-coding genes plus rnpB, yet substantial variation in mitogenome size, intron number, gene order, and orientation. In this comparison, the uniqueness of Gongronella is evident from similarly large differences to its closest phylogenetic neighbor, A. glauca. This study promotes our understanding of fungal evolution in Mucoromycota. KEY POINTS: • This study reports the first mitogenome in Gongronella, which presents a novel gene order. • Different Mucoromycota mitogenomes show substantial variation of gene organizations. • Most Mucoromycota species use the standard genetic code to translate mitochondrial genes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shu Zhang
- School of Life Science, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, 030006, China
| | - Shuang Wang
- School of Life Science, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, 030006, China
| | - Zemin Fang
- School of Life Sciences, Anhui University, Hefei, 230601, China.
| | - B Franz Lang
- Département de Biochimie, Centre Robert Cedergren, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Québec, H3T 1J4, Canada.
| | - Yong-Jie Zhang
- School of Life Science, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, 030006, China.
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16
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Lindemann CB. The flagellar germ-line hypothesis: How flagellate and ciliate gametes significantly shaped the evolution of organismal complexity. Bioessays 2021; 44:e2100143. [PMID: 34967029 DOI: 10.1002/bies.202100143] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2021] [Revised: 12/10/2021] [Accepted: 12/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
This essay presents a hypothesis which contends that the development of organismic complexity in the eukaryotes depended extensively on propagation via flagellated and ciliated gametes. Organisms utilizing flagellate and ciliate gametes to propagate their germ line have contributed most of the organismic complexity found in the higher animals. The genes of the flagellum and the flagellar assembly system (intraflagellar transport) have played a disproportionately important role in the construction of complex tissues and organs. The hypothesis also proposes that competition between large numbers of haploid flagellated male gametes rigorously conserved the functionality of a key set of flagellar genes for more than 700 million years. This in turn has insured that a large set (>600) of highly functional cytoskeletal and signal pathway genes is always present in the lineage of organisms with flagellated or ciliated gametes to act as a dependable resource, or "toolkit," for organ elaboration.
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17
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Yang H, Wang D, Guo L, Pan H, Yvon R, Garman S, Wu HM, Cheung AY. Malectin/Malectin-like domain-containing proteins: A repertoire of cell surface molecules with broad functional potential. Cell Surf 2021; 7:100056. [PMID: 34308005 PMCID: PMC8287233 DOI: 10.1016/j.tcsw.2021.100056] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2021] [Revised: 06/06/2021] [Accepted: 06/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Cell walls are at the front line of interactions between walled-organisms and their environment. They support cell expansion, ensure cell integrity and, for multicellular organisms such as plants, they provide cell adherence, support cell shape morphogenesis and mediate cell-cell communication. Wall-sensing, detecting perturbations in the wall and signaling the cell to respond accordingly, is crucial for growth and survival. In recent years, plant signaling research has suggested that a large family of receptor-like kinases (RLKs) could function as wall sensors partly because their extracellular domains show homology with malectin, a diglucose binding protein from the endoplasmic reticulum of animal cells. Studies of several malectin/malectin-like (M/ML) domain-containing RLKs (M/MLD-RLKs) from the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana have revealed an impressive array of biological roles, controlling growth, reproduction and stress responses, processes that in various ways rely on or affect the cell wall. Malectin homologous sequences are widespread across biological kingdoms, but plants have uniquely evolved a highly expanded family of proteins with ML domains embedded within various protein contexts. Here, we present an overview on proteins with malectin homologous sequences in different kingdoms, discuss the chromosomal organization of Arabidopsis M/MLD-RLKs and the phylogenetic relationship between these proteins from several model and crop species. We also discuss briefly the molecular networks that enable the diverse biological roles served by M/MLD-RLKs studied thus far.
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Affiliation(s)
- He Yang
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Massachusetts, USA
- Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, University of Massachusetts, USA
| | - Dong Wang
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Massachusetts, USA
- Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, University of Massachusetts, USA
- Plant Biology Graduate Program, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, USA
| | - Li Guo
- Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, University of Massachusetts, USA
- Faculty of Electronic and Information Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, China
| | - Huairong Pan
- Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, University of Massachusetts, USA
- College of Biology, Hunan University, Changsha 410082, China
| | - Robert Yvon
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Massachusetts, USA
- Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, University of Massachusetts, USA
| | - Scott Garman
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Massachusetts, USA
- Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, University of Massachusetts, USA
| | - Hen-Ming Wu
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Massachusetts, USA
- Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, University of Massachusetts, USA
| | - Alice Y. Cheung
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Massachusetts, USA
- Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, University of Massachusetts, USA
- Plant Biology Graduate Program, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, USA
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18
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Muthye V, Lavrov DV. Multiple Losses of MSH1, Gain of mtMutS, and Other Changes in the MutS Family of DNA Repair Proteins in Animals. Genome Biol Evol 2021; 13:evab191. [PMID: 34402879 PMCID: PMC8438181 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evab191] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/11/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
MutS is a key component of the mismatch repair (MMR) pathway. Members of the MutS protein family are present in prokaryotes, eukaryotes, and viruses. Six MutS homologs (MSH1-6) have been identified in yeast, of which three function in nuclear MMR, while MSH1 functions in mitochondrial DNA repair. MSH proteins are believed to be well conserved in animals, except for MSH1-which is thought to be lost. Two intriguing exceptions to this general picture have been found, both in the class Anthozoa within the phylum Cnidaria. First, an ortholog of the yeast-MSH1 was reported in one hexacoral species. Second, a MutS homolog (mtMutS) has been found in the mitochondrial genome of all octocorals. To understand the origin and potential functional implications of these exceptions, we investigated the evolution of the MutS family both in Cnidaria and in animals in general. Our study confirmed the acquisition of octocoral mtMutS by horizontal gene transfer from a giant virus. Surprisingly, we identified MSH1 in all hexacorals and several sponges and placozoans. By contrast, MSH1 orthologs were lacking in other cnidarians, ctenophores, and bilaterian animals. Furthermore, while we identified MSH2 and MSH6 in nearly all animals, MSH4, MSH5, and, especially, MSH3 were missing in multiple species. Overall, our analysis revealed a dynamic evolution of the MutS family in animals, with multiple losses of MSH1, MSH3, some losses of MSH4 and MSH5, and a gain of the octocoral mtMutS. We propose that octocoral mtMutS functionally replaced MSH1 that was present in the common ancestor of Anthozoa.
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Affiliation(s)
- Viraj Muthye
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Organismal Biology, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa
| | - Dennis V Lavrov
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Organismal Biology, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa
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19
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Mukhopadhyay J, Hausner G. Organellar Introns in Fungi, Algae, and Plants. Cells 2021; 10:cells10082001. [PMID: 34440770 PMCID: PMC8393795 DOI: 10.3390/cells10082001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2021] [Revised: 07/31/2021] [Accepted: 08/05/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Introns are ubiquitous in eukaryotic genomes and have long been considered as ‘junk RNA’ but the huge energy expenditure in their transcription, removal, and degradation indicate that they may have functional significance and can offer evolutionary advantages. In fungi, plants and algae introns make a significant contribution to the size of the organellar genomes. Organellar introns are classified as catalytic self-splicing introns that can be categorized as either Group I or Group II introns. There are some biases, with Group I introns being more frequently encountered in fungal mitochondrial genomes, whereas among plants Group II introns dominate within the mitochondrial and chloroplast genomes. Organellar introns can encode a variety of proteins, such as maturases, homing endonucleases, reverse transcriptases, and, in some cases, ribosomal proteins, along with other novel open reading frames. Although organellar introns are viewed to be ribozymes, they do interact with various intron- or nuclear genome-encoded protein factors that assist in the intron RNA to fold into competent splicing structures, or facilitate the turn-over of intron RNAs to prevent reverse splicing. Organellar introns are also known to be involved in non-canonical splicing, such as backsplicing and trans-splicing which can result in novel splicing products or, in some instances, compensate for the fragmentation of genes by recombination events. In organellar genomes, Group I and II introns may exist in nested intronic arrangements, such as introns within introns, referred to as twintrons, where splicing of the external intron may be dependent on splicing of the internal intron. These nested or complex introns, with two or three-component intron modules, are being explored as platforms for alternative splicing and their possible function as molecular switches for modulating gene expression which could be potentially applied towards heterologous gene expression. This review explores recent findings on organellar Group I and II introns, focusing on splicing and mobility mechanisms aided by associated intron/nuclear encoded proteins and their potential roles in organellar gene expression and cross talk between nuclear and organellar genomes. Potential application for these types of elements in biotechnology are also discussed.
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MESH Headings
- Evolution, Molecular
- Gene Expression Regulation, Fungal
- Gene Expression Regulation, Plant
- Genome, Fungal
- Genome, Plant
- Introns
- Organelles/genetics
- Organelles/metabolism
- RNA Splicing
- RNA Stability
- RNA, Algal/genetics
- RNA, Algal/metabolism
- RNA, Fungal/genetics
- RNA, Fungal/metabolism
- RNA, Plant/genetics
- RNA, Plant/metabolism
- RNA, Untranslated/genetics
- RNA, Untranslated/metabolism
- Transcription, Genetic
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20
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Megarioti AH, Kouvelis VN. The Coevolution of Fungal Mitochondrial Introns and Their Homing Endonucleases (GIY-YIG and LAGLIDADG). Genome Biol Evol 2021; 12:1337-1354. [PMID: 32585032 PMCID: PMC7487136 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evaa126] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/17/2020] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Fungal mitochondrial (mt) genomes exhibit great diversity in size which is partially attributed to their variable intergenic regions and most importantly to the inclusion of introns within their genes. These introns belong to group I or II, and both of them are self-splicing. The majority of them carry genes encoding homing endonucleases, either LAGLIDADG or GIY-YIG. In this study, it was found that these intronic homing endonucleases genes (HEGs) may originate from mt free-standing open reading frames which can be found nowadays in species belonging to Early Diverging Fungi as “living fossils.” A total of 487 introns carrying HEGs which were located in the publicly available mt genomes of representative species belonging to orders from all fungal phyla was analyzed. Their distribution in the mt genes, their insertion target sequence, and the phylogenetic analyses of the HEGs showed that these introns along with their HEGs form a composite structure in which both selfish elements coevolved. The invasion of the ancestral free-standing HEGs in the introns occurred through a perpetual mechanism, called in this study as “aenaon” hypothesis. It is based on recombination, transpositions, and horizontal gene transfer events throughout evolution. HEGs phylogenetically clustered primarily according to their intron hosts and secondarily to the mt genes carrying the introns and their HEGs. The evolutionary models created revealed an “intron-early” evolution which was enriched by “intron-late” events through many different independent recombinational events which resulted from both vertical and horizontal gene transfers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amalia H Megarioti
- Department of Genetics and Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece
| | - Vassili N Kouvelis
- Department of Genetics and Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece
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21
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Matriano DM, Alegado RA, Conaco C. Detection of horizontal gene transfer in the genome of the choanoflagellate Salpingoeca rosetta. Sci Rep 2021; 11:5993. [PMID: 33727612 PMCID: PMC7971027 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-85259-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2020] [Accepted: 02/28/2021] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Horizontal gene transfer (HGT), the movement of heritable materials between distantly related organisms, is crucial in eukaryotic evolution. However, the scale of HGT in choanoflagellates, the closest unicellular relatives of metazoans, and its possible roles in the evolution of animal multicellularity remains unexplored. We identified at least 175 candidate HGTs in the genome of the colonial choanoflagellate Salpingoeca rosetta using sequence-based tests. The majority of these were orthologous to genes in bacterial and microalgal lineages, yet displayed genomic features consistent with the rest of the S. rosetta genome-evidence of ancient acquisition events. Putative functions include enzymes involved in amino acid and carbohydrate metabolism, cell signaling, and the synthesis of extracellular matrix components. Functions of candidate HGTs may have contributed to the ability of choanoflagellates to assimilate novel metabolites, thereby supporting adaptation, survival in diverse ecological niches, and response to external cues that are possibly critical in the evolution of multicellularity in choanoflagellates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Danielle M Matriano
- Marine Science Institute, University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines
| | - Rosanna A Alegado
- Department of Oceanography, Hawai'i Sea Grant, Daniel K. Inouye Center for Microbial Oceanography: Research and Education, University of Hawai'i at Manoa, Honolulu, USA
| | - Cecilia Conaco
- Marine Science Institute, University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines.
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22
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Ros-Rocher N, Pérez-Posada A, Leger MM, Ruiz-Trillo I. The origin of animals: an ancestral reconstruction of the unicellular-to-multicellular transition. Open Biol 2021; 11:200359. [PMID: 33622103 PMCID: PMC8061703 DOI: 10.1098/rsob.200359] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
How animals evolved from a single-celled ancestor, transitioning from a unicellular lifestyle to a coordinated multicellular entity, remains a fascinating question. Key events in this transition involved the emergence of processes related to cell adhesion, cell–cell communication and gene regulation. To understand how these capacities evolved, we need to reconstruct the features of both the last common multicellular ancestor of animals and the last unicellular ancestor of animals. In this review, we summarize recent advances in the characterization of these ancestors, inferred by comparative genomic analyses between the earliest branching animals and those radiating later, and between animals and their closest unicellular relatives. We also provide an updated hypothesis regarding the transition to animal multicellularity, which was likely gradual and involved the use of gene regulatory mechanisms in the emergence of early developmental and morphogenetic plans. Finally, we discuss some new avenues of research that will complement these studies in the coming years.
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Affiliation(s)
- Núria Ros-Rocher
- Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Passeig Marítim de la Barceloneta 37-49, 08003 Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Alberto Pérez-Posada
- Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Passeig Marítim de la Barceloneta 37-49, 08003 Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.,Centro Andaluz de Biología del Desarrollo (CSIC-Universidad Pablo de Olavide), Carretera de Utrera Km 1, 41013 Sevilla, Andalusia, Spain
| | - Michelle M Leger
- Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Passeig Marítim de la Barceloneta 37-49, 08003 Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Iñaki Ruiz-Trillo
- Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Passeig Marítim de la Barceloneta 37-49, 08003 Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.,Departament de Genètica, Microbiologia i Estadística, Institut de Recerca de la Biodiversitat, Universitat de Barcelona, Avinguda Diagonal 643, 08028 Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.,ICREA, Passeig Lluís Companys 23, 08010 Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
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23
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Ruiz-Trillo I, de Mendoza A. Towards understanding the origin of animal development. Development 2020; 147:147/23/dev192575. [PMID: 33272929 DOI: 10.1242/dev.192575] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Almost all animals undergo embryonic development, going from a single-celled zygote to a complex multicellular adult. We know that the patterning and morphogenetic processes involved in development are deeply conserved within the animal kingdom. However, the origins of these developmental processes are just beginning to be unveiled. Here, we focus on how the protist lineages sister to animals are reshaping our view of animal development. Most intriguingly, many of these protistan lineages display transient multicellular structures, which are governed by similar morphogenetic and gene regulatory processes as animal development. We discuss here two potential alternative scenarios to explain the origin of animal embryonic development: either it originated concomitantly at the onset of animals or it evolved from morphogenetic processes already present in their unicellular ancestors. We propose that an integrative study of several unicellular taxa closely related to animals will allow a more refined picture of how the last common ancestor of animals underwent embryonic development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iñaki Ruiz-Trillo
- Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Passeig Marítim de la Barceloneta, 37-49, 08003 Barcelona, Spain .,Departament de Genètica, Microbiologia i Estadística, Institut de Recerca de la Biodiversitat, Universitat de Barcelona, Avinguda Diagonal 643, 08028 Barcelona, Spain.,ICREA, Pg. Lluís Companys 23, 08010 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Alex de Mendoza
- Queen Mary University of London, School of Biological and Chemical Sciences, London E1 4DQ, UK
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24
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Arroyo AS, Lannes R, Bapteste E, Ruiz-Trillo I. Gene Similarity Networks Unveil a Potential Novel Unicellular Group Closely Related to Animals from the Tara Oceans Expedition. Genome Biol Evol 2020; 12:1664-1678. [PMID: 32533833 PMCID: PMC7533066 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evaa117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/08/2020] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
The Holozoa clade comprises animals and several unicellular lineages (choanoflagellates, filastereans, and teretosporeans). Understanding their full diversity is essential to address the origins of animals and other evolutionary questions. However, they are poorly known. To provide more insights into the real diversity of holozoans and check for undiscovered diversity, we here analyzed 18S rDNA metabarcoding data from the global Tara Oceans expedition. To overcome the low phylogenetic information contained in the metabarcoding data set (composed of sequences from the short V9 region of the gene), we used similarity networks by combining two data sets: unknown environmental sequences from Tara Oceans and known reference sequences from GenBank. We then calculated network metrics to compare environmental sequences with reference sequences. These metrics reflected the divergence between both types of sequences and provided an effective way to search for evolutionary relevant diversity, further validated by phylogenetic placements. Our results showed that the percentage of unicellular holozoan diversity remains hidden. We found novelties in several lineages, especially in Acanthoecida choanoflagellates. We also identified a potential new holozoan group that could not be assigned to any of the described extant clades. Data on geographical distribution showed that, although ubiquitous, each unicellular holozoan lineage exhibits a different distribution pattern. We also identified a positive association between new animal hosts and the ichthyosporean symbiont Creolimax fragrantissima, as well as for other holozoans previously reported as free-living. Overall, our analyses provide a fresh perspective into the diversity and ecology of unicellular holozoans, highlighting the amount of undescribed diversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alicia S Arroyo
- Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Romain Lannes
- Institut de Systématique, Evolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB), Sorbonne Université, CNRS, Museum National d’Histoire Naturelle, EPHE, Université des Antilles, Paris, France
| | - Eric Bapteste
- Institut de Systématique, Evolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB), Sorbonne Université, CNRS, Museum National d’Histoire Naturelle, EPHE, Université des Antilles, Paris, France
| | - Iñaki Ruiz-Trillo
- Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Barcelona, Spain
- Departament de Genètica, Microbiologia I Estadística, Institut de Recerca de la Biodiversitat, Universitat de Barcelona, Spain
- ICREA, Barcelona, Spain
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25
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Lu Y, Ocaña-Pallarès E, López-Escardó D, Dennis SR, Monaghan MT, Ruiz-Trillo I, Spaak P, Wolinska J. Revisiting the phylogenetic position of Caullerya mesnili (Ichthyosporea), a common Daphnia parasite, based on 22 protein-coding genes. Mol Phylogenet Evol 2020; 151:106891. [PMID: 32562822 DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2020.106891] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2019] [Revised: 06/05/2020] [Accepted: 06/10/2020] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
Caullerya mesnili is a common and virulent parasite of the water flea, Daphnia. It was classified within the Haplosporidia (Rhizaria) for over a century. However, a recent molecular phylogeny based on the 18S rRNA gene suggested it belonged to the Ichthyosporea, a class of protists closely related to animals within the Opisthokonta clade. The exact phylogenetic position of C. mesnili remained uncertain because it appeared in the 18S rRNA tree with a very long branch and separated from all other taxa, suggesting that its position could be artifactual. A better understanding of its phylogenetic position has been constrained by a lack of molecular markers and the difficulty of obtaining a suitable quantity and quality of DNA from in vitro cultures, as this intracellular parasite cannot be cultured without its host. We isolated and collected spores of C. mesnili and sequenced genomic libraries. Phylogenetic analyses of a newly generated multi-protein data set (22 proteins, 4998 amino acids) and of sequences from the 18S rRNA gene both placed C. mesnili within the Ichthyophonida sub-clade of Ichthyosporea, as sister-taxon to Abeoforma whisleri and Pirum gemmata. Our study highlights the utility of metagenomic approaches for obtaining genomic information from intracellular parasites and for more accurate phylogenetic placement in evolutionary studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yameng Lu
- Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB), Berlin, Germany; Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag), Dübendorf, Switzerland.
| | - Eduard Ocaña-Pallarès
- Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
| | - David López-Escardó
- Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain; Institut de Ciències del Mar (ICM-CSIC), Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Stuart R Dennis
- Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag), Dübendorf, Switzerland
| | - Michael T Monaghan
- Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB), Berlin, Germany; Berlin Center for Genomics in Biodiversity Research (BeGenDiv), Berlin, Germany; Institut für Biologie, Freie Universität Berlin (FU), Berlin, Germany
| | - Iñaki Ruiz-Trillo
- Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain; Departament de Genètica, Microbiologia i Estadística, Institut de Recerca de la Biodiversitat (IRBio), Universitat de Barcelona (UB), Barcelona 08028, Catalonia, Spain; ICREA, Pg. Lluís Companys 23, 08010 Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Piet Spaak
- Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag), Dübendorf, Switzerland
| | - Justyna Wolinska
- Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB), Berlin, Germany; Institut für Biologie, Freie Universität Berlin (FU), Berlin, Germany
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Booth DS, King N. Genome editing enables reverse genetics of multicellular development in the choanoflagellate Salpingoeca rosetta. eLife 2020; 9:56193. [PMID: 32496191 PMCID: PMC7314544 DOI: 10.7554/elife.56193] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2020] [Accepted: 06/03/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
In a previous study, we established a forward genetic screen to identify genes required for multicellular development in the choanoflagellate, Salpingoeca rosetta (Levin et al., 2014). Yet, the paucity of reverse genetic tools for choanoflagellates has hampered direct tests of gene function and impeded the establishment of choanoflagellates as a model for reconstructing the origin of their closest living relatives, the animals. Here we establish CRISPR/Cas9-mediated genome editing in S. rosetta by engineering a selectable marker to enrich for edited cells. We then use genome editing to disrupt the coding sequence of a S. rosetta C-type lectin gene, rosetteless, and thereby demonstrate its necessity for multicellular rosette development. This work advances S. rosetta as a model system in which to investigate how genes identified from genetic screens and genomic surveys function in choanoflagellates and evolved as critical regulators of animal biology.
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Affiliation(s)
- David S Booth
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, United States
| | - Nicole King
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, United States
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27
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Tikhonenkov DV, Hehenberger E, Esaulov AS, Belyakova OI, Mazei YA, Mylnikov AP, Keeling PJ. Insights into the origin of metazoan multicellularity from predatory unicellular relatives of animals. BMC Biol 2020; 18:39. [PMID: 32272915 PMCID: PMC7147346 DOI: 10.1186/s12915-020-0762-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2019] [Accepted: 03/02/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The origin of animals from their unicellular ancestor was one of the most important events in evolutionary history, but the nature and the order of events leading up to the emergence of multicellular animals are still highly uncertain. The diversity and biology of unicellular relatives of animals have strongly informed our understanding of the transition from single-celled organisms to the multicellular Metazoa. Here, we analyze the cellular structures and complex life cycles of the novel unicellular holozoans Pigoraptor and Syssomonas (Opisthokonta), and their implications for the origin of animals. RESULTS Syssomonas and Pigoraptor are characterized by complex life cycles with a variety of cell types including flagellates, amoeboflagellates, amoeboid non-flagellar cells, and spherical cysts. The life cycles also include the formation of multicellular aggregations and syncytium-like structures, and an unusual diet for single-celled opisthokonts (partial cell fusion and joint sucking of a large eukaryotic prey), all of which provide new insights into the origin of multicellularity in Metazoa. Several existing models explaining the origin of multicellular animals have been put forward, but these data are interestingly consistent with one, the "synzoospore hypothesis." CONCLUSIONS The feeding modes of the ancestral metazoan may have been more complex than previously thought, including not only bacterial prey, but also larger eukaryotic cells and organic structures. The ability to feed on large eukaryotic prey could have been a powerful trigger in the formation and development of both aggregative (e.g., joint feeding, which also implies signaling) and clonal (e.g., hypertrophic growth followed by palintomy) multicellular stages that played important roles in the emergence of multicellular animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Denis V Tikhonenkov
- Papanin Institute for Biology of Inland Waters, Russian Academy of Sciences, Borok, Russia, 152742.
- Department of Botany, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, V6T 1Z4, Canada.
| | - Elisabeth Hehenberger
- Ocean EcoSystems Biology Unit, RD3, GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel, Duesternbrookerweg 20, 24105, Kiel, Germany
| | | | | | | | - Alexander P Mylnikov
- Papanin Institute for Biology of Inland Waters, Russian Academy of Sciences, Borok, Russia, 152742
| | - Patrick J Keeling
- Department of Botany, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, V6T 1Z4, Canada.
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28
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Roumia AF, Theodoropoulou MC, Tsirigos KD, Nielsen H, Bagos PG. Landscape of Eukaryotic Transmembrane Beta Barrel Proteins. J Proteome Res 2020; 19:1209-1221. [PMID: 32008325 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jproteome.9b00740] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Even though in the last few years several families of eukaryotic β-barrel outer membrane proteins have been discovered, their computational characterization and their annotation in public databases are far from complete. The PFAM database includes only very few characteristic profiles for these families, and in most cases, the profile hidden Markov models (pHMMs) have been trained using prokaryotic and eukaryotic proteins together. Here, we present for the first time a comprehensive computational analysis of eukaryotic transmembrane β-barrels. Twelve characteristic pHMMs were built, based on an extensive literature search, which can discriminate eukaryotic β-barrels from other classes of proteins (globular and bacterial β-barrel ones), as well as between mitochondrial and chloroplastic ones. We built eight novel profiles for the chloroplastic β-barrel families that are not present in the PFAM database and also updated the profile for the MDM10 family (PF12519) in the PFAM database and divide the porin family (PF01459) into two separate families, namely, VDAC and TOM40.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ahmed F Roumia
- Department of Computer Science and Biomedical Informatics, University of Thessaly, 35100 Lamia, Greece
| | | | - Konstantinos D Tsirigos
- Disease Systems Biology Program, Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Protein Research, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, DK-2200 Copenhagen, Denmark.,Department of Health Technology, Section for Bioinformatics, Technical University of Denmark, DK-2800 Kgs Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Henrik Nielsen
- Department of Health Technology, Section for Bioinformatics, Technical University of Denmark, DK-2800 Kgs Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Pantelis G Bagos
- Department of Computer Science and Biomedical Informatics, University of Thessaly, 35100 Lamia, Greece
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29
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Schultz DT, Eizenga JM, Corbett-Detig RB, Francis WR, Christianson LM, Haddock SH. Conserved novel ORFs in the mitochondrial genome of the ctenophore Beroe forskalii. PeerJ 2020; 8:e8356. [PMID: 32025367 PMCID: PMC6991124 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.8356] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2019] [Accepted: 12/04/2019] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
To date, five ctenophore species' mitochondrial genomes have been sequenced, and each contains open reading frames (ORFs) that if translated have no identifiable orthologs. ORFs with no identifiable orthologs are called unidentified reading frames (URFs). If truly protein-coding, ctenophore mitochondrial URFs represent a little understood path in early-diverging metazoan mitochondrial evolution and metabolism. We sequenced and annotated the mitochondrial genomes of three individuals of the beroid ctenophore Beroe forskalii and found that in addition to sharing the same canonical mitochondrial genes as other ctenophores, the B. forskalii mitochondrial genome contains two URFs. These URFs are conserved among the three individuals but not found in other sequenced species. We developed computational tools called pauvre and cuttlery to determine the likelihood that URFs are protein coding. There is evidence that the two URFs are under negative selection, and a novel Bayesian hypothesis test of trinucleotide frequency shows that the URFs are more similar to known coding genes than noncoding intergenic sequence. Protein structure and function prediction of all ctenophore URFs suggests that they all code for transmembrane transport proteins. These findings, along with the presence of URFs in other sequenced ctenophore mitochondrial genomes, suggest that ctenophores may have uncharacterized transmembrane proteins present in their mitochondria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Darrin T. Schultz
- Department of Biomolecular Engineering and Bioinformatics, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
- Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, Moss Landing, CA, USA
| | - Jordan M. Eizenga
- Department of Biomolecular Engineering and Bioinformatics, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Russell B. Corbett-Detig
- Department of Biomolecular Engineering and Bioinformatics, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Warren R. Francis
- Department of Biology, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark
| | | | - Steven H.D. Haddock
- Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, Moss Landing, CA, USA
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
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30
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Michalec OM, Chang BSW, Lovejoy NR, Lovejoy DA. Corticotropin-Releasing Factor: An Ancient Peptide Family Related to the Secretin Peptide Superfamily. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne) 2020; 11:529. [PMID: 32973673 PMCID: PMC7481443 DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2020.00529] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2020] [Accepted: 06/29/2020] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) is the hypothalamic releasing peptide that regulates the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal/inter-renal (HPA/I) axis in vertebrates. Over the last 25 years, there has been considerable discussion on its paralogs genes, urotensin-I/urocortin-1, and urocortins-2 and-3 and their subsequent role in the vertebrate stress response. Phylogenetically, the CRF family of peptides also belong to the diverse assemblage of Secretin- and Calcitonin-based peptides as evidenced by comparative-based studies of both their ligand and G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) structures. Despite this, the common origin of this large assemblage of peptides has not been ascertained. An unusual peptide, teneurin-C-terminal associated peptide (TCAP), reported in 2004, comprises the distal extracellular tip of the teneurin transmembrane proteins. Further studies indicated that this teneurin region binds to the latrophilin family of GPCRs. Initially thought to be a member of the Secretin GPCR family, evidence indicates that the latrophilins are a member of the Adhesion family of GPCRs and are related to the common ancestor of both Adhesion and Secretin GPCR families. In this study, we posit that TCAP may be a distantly related ancestor of the CRF-Calcitonin-Secretin peptide family and evolved near the base of metazoan phylogeny.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ola M Michalec
- Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto - St. George Campus, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Belinda S W Chang
- Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto - St. George Campus, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Nathan R Lovejoy
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Toronto Scarborough, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - David A Lovejoy
- Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto - St. George Campus, Toronto, ON, Canada
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31
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Southworth J, Grace CA, Marron AO, Fatima N, Carr M. A genomic survey of transposable elements in the choanoflagellate Salpingoeca rosetta reveals selection on codon usage. Mob DNA 2019; 10:44. [PMID: 31788034 PMCID: PMC6875170 DOI: 10.1186/s13100-019-0189-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2019] [Accepted: 11/13/2019] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Unicellular species make up the majority of eukaryotic diversity, however most studies on transposable elements (TEs) have centred on multicellular host species. Such studies may have therefore provided a limited picture of how transposable elements evolve across eukaryotes. The choanoflagellates, as the sister group to Metazoa, are an important study group for investigating unicellular to multicellular transitions. A previous survey of the choanoflagellate Monosiga brevicollis revealed the presence of only three families of LTR retrotransposons, all of which appeared to be active. Salpingoeca rosetta is the second choanoflagellate to have its whole genome sequenced and provides further insight into the evolution and population biology of transposable elements in the closest relative of metazoans. Results Screening the genome revealed the presence of a minimum of 20 TE families. Seven of the annotated families are DNA transposons and the remaining 13 families are LTR retrotransposons. Evidence for two putative non-LTR retrotransposons was also uncovered, but full-length sequences could not be determined. Superfamily phylogenetic trees indicate that vertical inheritance and, in the case of one family, horizontal transfer have been involved in the evolution of the choanoflagellates TEs. Phylogenetic analyses of individual families highlight recent element activity in the genome, however six families did not show evidence of current transposition. The majority of families possess young insertions and the expression levels of TE genes vary by four orders of magnitude across families. In contrast to previous studies on TEs, the families present in S. rosetta show the signature of selection on codon usage, with families favouring codons that are adapted to the host translational machinery. Selection is stronger in LTR retrotransposons than DNA transposons, with highly expressed families showing stronger codon usage bias. Mutation pressure towards guanosine and cytosine also appears to contribute to TE codon usage. Conclusions S. rosetta increases the known diversity of choanoflagellate TEs and the complement further highlights the role of horizontal gene transfer from prey species in choanoflagellate genome evolution. Unlike previously studied TEs, the S. rosetta families show evidence for selection on their codon usage, which is shown to act via translational efficiency and translational accuracy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jade Southworth
- 1Department of Biological & Geographical Sciences, University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield, HD1 3DH UK
| | - C Alastair Grace
- 1Department of Biological & Geographical Sciences, University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield, HD1 3DH UK
| | - Alan O Marron
- 2Department of Plant Sciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EA UK
| | - Nazeefa Fatima
- 3Science for Life Laboratory, Department of Immunology, Genetics and Pathology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Martin Carr
- 1Department of Biological & Geographical Sciences, University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield, HD1 3DH UK
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32
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Burki F, Roger AJ, Brown MW, Simpson AGB. The New Tree of Eukaryotes. Trends Ecol Evol 2019; 35:43-55. [PMID: 31606140 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2019.08.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 412] [Impact Index Per Article: 82.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2019] [Revised: 08/15/2019] [Accepted: 08/15/2019] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
For 15 years, the eukaryote Tree of Life (eToL) has been divided into five to eight major groupings, known as 'supergroups'. However, the tree has been profoundly rearranged during this time. The new eToL results from the widespread application of phylogenomics and numerous discoveries of major lineages of eukaryotes, mostly free-living heterotrophic protists. The evidence that supports the tree has transitioned from a synthesis of molecular phylogenetics and biological characters to purely molecular phylogenetics. Most current supergroups lack defining morphological or cell-biological characteristics, making the supergroup label even more arbitrary than before. Going forward, the combination of traditional culturing with maturing culture-free approaches and phylogenomics should accelerate the process of completing and resolving the eToL at its deepest levels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabien Burki
- Department of Organismal Biology, Program in Systematic Biology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden; Science for Life Laboratory, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden.
| | - Andrew J Roger
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada; Centre for Comparative Genomics and Evolutionary Bioinformatics, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada
| | - Matthew W Brown
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS, USA; Institute for Genomics, Biocomputing, and Biotechnology, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS, USA
| | - Alastair G B Simpson
- Centre for Comparative Genomics and Evolutionary Bioinformatics, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada; Department of Biology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada.
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33
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Khadka B, Gupta RS. Novel Molecular Signatures in the PIP4K/PIP5K Family of Proteins Specific for Different Isozymes and Subfamilies Provide Important Insights into the Evolutionary Divergence of this Protein Family. Genes (Basel) 2019; 10:genes10040312. [PMID: 31010098 PMCID: PMC6523245 DOI: 10.3390/genes10040312] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2019] [Revised: 04/10/2019] [Accepted: 04/15/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Members of the PIP4K/PIP5K family of proteins, which generate the highly important secondary messenger phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate, play central roles in regulating diverse signaling pathways. In eukaryotic organisms, multiple isozymes and subfamilies of PIP4K/PIP5K proteins are found and it is of much interest to understand their evolution and species distribution and what unique molecular and biochemical characteristics distinguish specific isozymes and subfamilies of proteins. We report here the species distribution of different PIP4K/PIP5K family of proteins in eukaryotic organisms and phylogenetic analysis based on their protein sequences. Our results indicate that the distinct homologs of both PIP4K and PIP5K are found in different organisms belonging to the Holozoa clade of eukaryotes, which comprises of various metazoan phyla as well as their close unicellular relatives Choanoflagellates and Filasterea. In contrast, the deeper-branching eukaryotic lineages, as well as plants and fungi, contain only a single homolog of the PIP4K/PIP5K proteins. In parallel, our comparative analyses of PIP4K/PIP5K protein sequences have identified six highly-specific molecular markers consisting of conserved signature indels (CSIs) that are uniquely shared by either the PIP4K or PIP5K proteins, or both, or specific subfamilies of these proteins. Of these molecular markers, 2 CSIs are distinctive characteristics of all PIP4K homologs, 1 CSI distinguishes the PIP4K and PIP5K homologs from the Holozoa clade of species from the ancestral form of PIP4K/PIP5K found in deeper-branching eukaryotic lineages. The remaining three CSIs are specific for the PIP5Kα, PIP5Kβ, and PIP4Kγ subfamilies of proteins from vertebrate species. These molecular markers provide important means for distinguishing different PIP4K/PIP5K isozymes as well as some of their subfamilies. In addition, the distribution patterns of these markers in different isozymes provide important insights into the evolutionary divergence of PIP4K/PIP5K proteins. Our results support the view that the Holozoa clade of eukaryotic organisms shared a common ancestor exclusive of the other eukaryotic lineages and that the initial gene duplication event leading to the divergence of distinct types of PIP4K and PIP5K homologs occurred in a common ancestor of this clade. Based on the results gleaned from different studies presented here, a model for the evolutionary divergence of the PIP4K/PIP5K family of proteins is presented.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bijendra Khadka
- Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8N 3Z5, Canada.
| | - Radhey S Gupta
- Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8N 3Z5, Canada.
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Denbo S, Aono K, Kai T, Yagasaki R, Ruiz-Trillo I, Suga H. Revision of the Capsaspora genome using read mating information adjusts the view on premetazoan genome. Dev Growth Differ 2018; 61:34-42. [PMID: 30585312 DOI: 10.1111/dgd.12587] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/01/2018] [Revised: 11/19/2018] [Accepted: 11/19/2018] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The genome sequences of unicellular holozoans, the closest relatives to animals, are shedding light on the evolution of animal multicellularity, shaping the genetic contents of the putative premetazoans. However, the assembly quality of the genomes remains poor compared to the major model organisms such as human and fly. Improving the assembly is critical for precise comparative genomics studies and further molecular biological studies requiring accurate sequence information such as enhancer analysis and genome editing. In this report, we present a new strategy to improve the assembly by fully exploiting the information of Illumina mate-pair reads. By visualizing the distance and orientation of the mapped read pairs, we could highlight the regions where possible assembly errors exist in the genome sequence of Capsaspora, a lineage of unicellular holozoans. Manual modification of these errors repaired 590 assembly problems in total and reassembled 84 supercontigs into 55. Our telomere prediction analysis using the read pairs containing the pan-eukaryotic telomere-like sequence identified at least 13 chromosomes. The resulting new assembly posed us a re-annotation of 112 genes, including 15 putative receptor protein tyrosine kinases. Our strategy thus provides a useful approach for improving assemblies of draft genomes, and the new Capsaspora genome offers us an opportunity to adjust the view on the genome of the unicellular animal ancestor.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seitaro Denbo
- Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, Prefectural University of Hiroshima, Shobara, Japan
| | - Katsutoshi Aono
- Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, Prefectural University of Hiroshima, Shobara, Japan
| | - Takaaki Kai
- Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, Prefectural University of Hiroshima, Shobara, Japan
| | - Rei Yagasaki
- Department of Zoology, Division of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Iñaki Ruiz-Trillo
- Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Barcelona, Spain.,Departament de Genètica, Microbiologia i Estadística, Facultat de Bilogia, Institut de Recerca de la Biodiversitat (IRBio), Universitat de Barcelona (UB), Barcelona, Spain.,ICREA, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Hiroshi Suga
- Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, Prefectural University of Hiroshima, Shobara, Japan
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Booth DS, Szmidt-Middleton H, King N. Transfection of choanoflagellates illuminates their cell biology and the ancestry of animal septins. Mol Biol Cell 2018; 29:3026-3038. [PMID: 30281390 PMCID: PMC6333174 DOI: 10.1091/mbc.e18-08-0514] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2018] [Revised: 09/20/2018] [Accepted: 09/24/2018] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
As the closest living relatives of animals, choanoflagellates offer unique insights into animal origins and core mechanisms underlying animal cell biology. However, unlike traditional model organisms, such as yeast, flies, and worms, choanoflagellates have been refractory to DNA delivery methods for expressing foreign genes. Here we report a robust method for expressing transgenes in the choanoflagellate Salpingoeca rosetta, overcoming barriers that have previously hampered DNA delivery and expression. To demonstrate how this method accelerates the study of S. rosetta cell biology, we engineered a panel of fluorescent protein markers that illuminate key features of choanoflagellate cells. We then investigated the localization of choanoflagellate septins, a family of GTP-binding cytoskeletal proteins that are hypothesized to regulate multicellular rosette development in S. rosetta. Fluorescently tagged septins localized to the basal poles of S. rosetta single cells and rosettes in a pattern resembling septin localization in animal epithelia. The establishment of transfection in S. rosetta and its application to the study of septins represent critical advances in the use of S. rosetta as an experimental model for investigating choanoflagellate cell biology, core mechanisms underlying animal cell biology, and the origin of animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- David S. Booth
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720
| | - Heather Szmidt-Middleton
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720
| | - Nicole King
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720
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Arroyo AS, López-Escardó D, Kim E, Ruiz-Trillo I, Najle SR. Novel Diversity of Deeply Branching Holomycota and Unicellular Holozoans Revealed by Metabarcoding in Middle Paraná River, Argentina. Front Ecol Evol 2018. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2018.00099] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
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López-Escardó D, López-García P, Moreira D, Ruiz-Trillo I, Torruella G. Parvularia atlantis gen. et sp. nov., a Nucleariid Filose Amoeba (Holomycota, Opisthokonta). J Eukaryot Microbiol 2018; 65:170-179. [PMID: 28741861 PMCID: PMC5708529 DOI: 10.1111/jeu.12450] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2016] [Revised: 07/10/2017] [Accepted: 07/17/2017] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
The opisthokonts constitute a eukaryotic supergroup divided into two main clades: the holozoans, which include animals and their unicellular relatives, and the holomycotans, which include fungi, opisthosporidians, and nucleariids. Nucleariids are phagotrophic filose amoebae that phenotypically resemble more their distant holozoan cousins than their holomycotan phylogenetic relatives. Despite their evolutionary interest, the diversity and internal phylogenetic relationships within the nucleariids remain poorly studied. Here, we formally describe and characterize by molecular phylogeny and microscopy observations Parvularia atlantis gen. et sp. nov. (formerly Nuclearia sp. ATCC 50694), and compare its features with those of other nucleariid genera. Parvularia is an amoebal genus characterized by radiating knobbed and branching filopodia. It exhibits prominent vacuoles observable under light microscopy, a cyst-like stage, and completely lacks cilia. P. atlantis possesses one or two nuclei with a central nucleolus, and mitochondria with flat or discoid cristae. These morphological features, although typical of nucleariids, represent a combination of characters different to those of any other described Nuclearia species. Likewise, 18S rRNA-based phylogenetic analyses show that P. atlantis represents a distinct lineage within the nucleariids.
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Affiliation(s)
- David López-Escardó
- Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Passeig Marítim de la Barceloneta 37-49, Barcelona 08003, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Purificación López-García
- Ecologie Systématique Evolution, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, AgroParisTech, Université Paris-Saclay, 91400 Orsay, France
| | - David Moreira
- Ecologie Systématique Evolution, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, AgroParisTech, Université Paris-Saclay, 91400 Orsay, France
| | - Iñaki Ruiz-Trillo
- Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Passeig Marítim de la Barceloneta 37-49, Barcelona 08003, Catalonia, Spain
- Departament de Genètica, Microbiologia i Estadística, Universitat de Barcelona, Avinguda Diagonal 645, Barcelona 08028, Catalonia, Spain
- ICREA, Pg. Lluís Companys 23, 08010 Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Guifré Torruella
- Ecologie Systématique Evolution, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, AgroParisTech, Université Paris-Saclay, 91400 Orsay, France
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Pruyne D. Probing the origins of metazoan formin diversity: Evidence for evolutionary relationships between metazoan and non-metazoan formin subtypes. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0186081. [PMID: 28982189 PMCID: PMC5628938 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0186081] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2017] [Accepted: 09/25/2017] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Formins are proteins that assist in regulating cytoskeletal organization through interactions with actin filaments and microtubules. Metazoans encode nine distinct formin subtypes based on sequence similarity, potentially allowing for great functional diversity for these proteins. Through the evolution of the eukaryotes, formins are believed to have repeatedly undergone rounds of gene duplications, followed by diversification and domain shuffling, but previous phylogenetic analyses have shed only a little light on the specific origins of different formin subtypes. To improve our understanding of this in the case of the metazoan formins, phylogenetic comparisons were made here of a broad range of metazoan and non-metazoan formin sequences. This analysis suggests a model in which eight of the nine metazoan formin subtypes arose from two ancestral proteins that were present in an ancient unikont ancestor. Additionally, evidence is shown suggesting the common ancestor of unikonts and bikonts was likely to have encoded at least two formins, a canonical Drf-type protein and a formin bearing a PTEN-like domain.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Pruyne
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, State University of New York Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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Berbee ML, James TY, Strullu-Derrien C. Early Diverging Fungi: Diversity and Impact at the Dawn of Terrestrial Life. Annu Rev Microbiol 2017; 71:41-60. [DOI: 10.1146/annurev-micro-030117-020324] [Citation(s) in RCA: 120] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Mary L. Berbee
- Department of Botany, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - Timothy Y. James
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109
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Zimmers J, Thomas M, Yang L, Bombarely A, Mancuso M, Wojciechowski M, Smith J. Species boundaries in the Astragalus cusickii complex delimited using molecular phylogenetic techniques. Mol Phylogenet Evol 2017; 114:93-110. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2017.06.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2017] [Revised: 05/01/2017] [Accepted: 06/07/2017] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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Radek R, Wurzbacher C, Gisder S, Nilsson RH, Owerfeldt A, Genersch E, Kirk PM, Voigt K. Morphologic and molecular data help adopting the insect-pathogenic nephridiophagids (Nephridiophagidae) among the early diverging fungal lineages, close to the Chytridiomycota. MycoKeys 2017. [DOI: 10.3897/mycokeys.25.12446] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Nephridiophagids are poorly known unicellular eukaryotes, previously of uncertain systematic position, that parasitize the Malpighian tubules of insects. Their life cycle includes merogony with multinucleate plasmodia and sporogony leading to small, uninucleate spores. We examined the phylogenetic affiliations of three species of Nephridiophaga, including one new species, Nephridiophaga maderae, from the Madeira cockroach (Leucophaea maderae). In addition to the specific host, the new species differs from those already known by the size of the spores and by the number of spores within the sporogenic plasmodium. The inferred phylogenetic analyses strongly support a placement of the nephridiophagids in the fungal kingdom near its root and with a close, but unresolved, relationship to the chytids (Chytridiomycota). We found evidence for the nephridiophagidean speciation as being strongly coupled to host speciation.
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Hehenberger E, Tikhonenkov DV, Kolisko M, Del Campo J, Esaulov AS, Mylnikov AP, Keeling PJ. Novel Predators Reshape Holozoan Phylogeny and Reveal the Presence of a Two-Component Signaling System in the Ancestor of Animals. Curr Biol 2017. [PMID: 28648822 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2017.06.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
Our understanding of the origin of animals has been transformed by characterizing their most closely related, unicellular sisters: the choanoflagellates, filastereans, and ichthyosporeans. Together with animals, these lineages make up the Holozoa [1, 2]. Many traits previously considered "animal specific" were subsequently found in other holozoans [3, 4], showing that they evolved before animals, although exactly when is currently uncertain because several key relationships remain unresolved [2, 5]. Here we report the morphology and transcriptome sequencing from three novel unicellular holozoans: Pigoraptor vietnamica and Pigoraptor chileana, which are related to filastereans, and Syssomonas multiformis, which forms a new lineage with Corallochytrium in phylogenomic analyses. All three species are predatory flagellates that feed on large eukaryotic prey, and all three also appear to exhibit complex life histories with several distinct stages, including multicellular clusters. Examination of genes associated with multicellularity in animals showed that the new filastereans contain a cell-adhesion gene repertoire similar to those of other species in this group. Syssomonas multiformis possessed a smaller complement overall but does encode genes absent from the earlier-branching ichthyosporeans. Analysis of the T-box transcription factor domain showed expansion of T-box transcription factors based on combination with a non-T-box domain (a receiver domain), which has not been described outside of vertebrates. This domain and other domains we identified in all unicellular holozoans are part of the two-component signaling system that has been lost in animals, suggesting the continued use of this system in the closest relatives of animals and emphasizing the importance of studying loss of function as well as gain in major evolutionary transitions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elisabeth Hehenberger
- Department of Botany, University of British Columbia, 3529-6270 University Boulevard, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada.
| | - Denis V Tikhonenkov
- Laboratory of Microbiology, Institute for Biology of Inland Waters, Russian Academy of Sciences, Yaroslavl Region, Borok 152742, Russia
| | - Martin Kolisko
- Biology Centre, Institute of Parasitology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Branisovska 31, 370 05 Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
| | - Javier Del Campo
- Department of Botany, University of British Columbia, 3529-6270 University Boulevard, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - Anton S Esaulov
- Department of Microbiology, Epidemiology and Infectious Diseases, Penza State University, Lermontov Street 37, Penza 440026, Russia
| | - Alexander P Mylnikov
- Laboratory of Microbiology, Institute for Biology of Inland Waters, Russian Academy of Sciences, Yaroslavl Region, Borok 152742, Russia
| | - Patrick J Keeling
- Department of Botany, University of British Columbia, 3529-6270 University Boulevard, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada
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Abstract
The first animals evolved from an unknown single-celled ancestor in the Precambrian period. Recently, the identification and characterization of the genomic and cellular traits of the protists most closely related to animals have shed light on the origin of animals. Comparisons of animals with these unicellular relatives allow us to reconstruct the first evolutionary steps towards animal multicellularity. Here, we review the results of these investigations and discuss their implications for understanding the earliest stages of animal evolution, including the origin of metazoan genes and genome function.
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Lai AG, Pouchkina-Stantcheva N, Di Donfrancesco A, Kildisiute G, Sahu S, Aboobaker AA. The protein subunit of telomerase displays patterns of dynamic evolution and conservation across different metazoan taxa. BMC Evol Biol 2017; 17:107. [PMID: 28441946 PMCID: PMC5405514 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-017-0949-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2017] [Accepted: 04/04/2017] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Most animals employ telomerase, which consists of a catalytic subunit known as the telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) and an RNA template, to maintain telomere ends. Given the importance of TERT and telomere biology in core metazoan life history traits, like ageing and the control of somatic cell proliferation, we hypothesised that TERT would have patterns of sequence and regulatory evolution reflecting the diverse life histories across the Animal Kingdom. RESULTS We performed a complete investigation of the evolutionary history of TERT across animals. We show that although TERT is almost ubiquitous across Metazoa, it has undergone substantial sequence evolution within canonical motifs. Beyond the known canonical motifs, we also identify and compare regions that are highly variable between lineages, but show conservation within phyla. Recent data have highlighted the importance of alternative splice forms of TERT in non-canonical functions and although animals may share some conserved introns, we find that the selection of exons for alternative splicing appears to be highly variable, and regulation by alternative splicing appears to be a very dynamic feature of TERT evolution. We show that even within a closely related group of triclad flatworms, where alternative splicing of TERT was previously correlated with reproductive strategy, we observe highly diverse splicing patterns. CONCLUSIONS Our work establishes that the evolutionary history and structural evolution of TERT involves previously unappreciated levels of change and the emergence of lineage specific motifs. The sequence conservation we describe within phyla suggests that these new motifs likely serve essential biological functions of TERT, which along with changes in splicing, underpin diverse functions of TERT important for animal life histories.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alvina G Lai
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3PS, UK.
| | | | | | - Gerda Kildisiute
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3PS, UK
| | - Sounak Sahu
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3PS, UK
| | - A Aziz Aboobaker
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3PS, UK.
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Pei J, Grishin NV. Expansion of divergent SEA domains in cell surface proteins and nucleoporin 54. Protein Sci 2017; 26:617-630. [PMID: 27977898 DOI: 10.1002/pro.3096] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2016] [Revised: 11/28/2016] [Accepted: 11/29/2016] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
SEA (sea urchin sperm protein, enterokinase, agrin) domains, many of which possess autoproteolysis activity, have been found in a number of cell surface and secreted proteins. Despite high sequence divergence, SEA domains were also proposed to be present in dystroglycan based on a conserved autoproteolysis motif and receptor-type protein phosphatase IA-2 based on structural similarity. The presence of a SEA domain adjacent to the transmembrane segment appears to be a recurring theme in quite a number of type I transmembrane proteins on the cell surface, such as MUC1, dystroglycan, IA-2, and Notch receptors. By comparative sequence and structural analyses, we identified dystroglycan-like proteins with SEA domains in Capsaspora owczarzaki of the Filasterea group, one of the closest single-cell relatives of metazoans. We also detected novel and divergent SEA domains in a variety of cell surface proteins such as EpCAM, α/ε-sarcoglycan, PTPRR, collectrin/Tmem27, amnionless, CD34, KIAA0319, fibrocystin-like protein, and a number of cadherins. While these proteins are mostly from metazoans or their single cell relatives such as choanoflagellates and Filasterea, fibrocystin-like proteins with SEA domains were found in several other eukaryotic lineages including green algae, Alveolata, Euglenozoa, and Haptophyta, suggesting an ancient evolutionary origin. In addition, the intracellular protein Nucleoporin 54 (Nup54) acquired a divergent SEA domain in choanoflagellates and metazoans.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Nick V Grishin
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute.,Department of Biophysics and Department of Biochemistry, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, Dallas, TX, 75390, USA
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Affiliation(s)
- Joyce E. Longcore
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Maine, Orono, Maine 04469-5722
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47
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Kirkegaard JB, Bouillant A, Marron AO, Leptos KC, Goldstein RE. Aerotaxis in the closest relatives of animals. eLife 2016; 5. [PMID: 27882869 PMCID: PMC5122458 DOI: 10.7554/elife.18109] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2016] [Accepted: 10/17/2016] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
As the closest unicellular relatives of animals, choanoflagellates serve as useful model organisms for understanding the evolution of animal multicellularity. An important factor in animal evolution was the increasing ocean oxygen levels in the Precambrian, which are thought to have influenced the emergence of complex multicellular life. As a first step in addressing these conditions, we study here the response of the colony-forming choanoflagellate Salpingoeca rosetta to oxygen gradients. Using a microfluidic device that allows spatio-temporal variations in oxygen concentrations, we report the discovery that S. rosetta displays positive aerotaxis. Analysis of the spatial population distributions provides evidence for logarithmic sensing of oxygen, which enhances sensing in low oxygen neighborhoods. Analysis of search strategy models on the experimental colony trajectories finds that choanoflagellate aerotaxis is consistent with stochastic navigation, the statistics of which are captured using an effective continuous version based on classical run-and-tumble chemotaxis. DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.18109.001 Most animals are made up of millions of cells, yet all animals evolved from ancestors that spent their whole lives as single cells. Today the closest single-celled relatives of animals are a group of aquatic organisms called choanoflagellates. Certain species of choanoflagellates can also form swimming colonies. This kind of multicellularity might resemble that seen in the earliest of animals. As such, studies into modern-day choanoflagellates can give insights into how the first animals to evolve might have behaved. Many organisms can find their way towards favorable areas using different strategies. For instance, bacteria can bias their tumbling to gradually swim towards food, and algae can turn and move directly towards light. While choanoflagellates require oxygen, it was not known if they could also actively navigate towards it, or any other resource. Now, Kirkegaard et al. find that the choanoflagellate Salpingoeca rosetta can indeed navigate towards oxygen – an ability called aerotaxis. This was true for both individual cells and for colonies made up of many cells. This discovery suggests that the transition from living as a single cell to living as a simple multicellular organism could still have allowed the earliest animals to seek out and move towards resource-rich areas. Aerotaxis requires cells to both sense oxygen and react appropriately to changes in its concentration. Kirkegaard et al. watched choanoflagellate colonies swimming under controlled conditions and varied the oxygen concentration in the water over time. These experiments revealed that the colonies navigate based on the logarithm of the oxygen concentration, so that at low oxygen levels the cells were even more sensitive to small changes in oxygen concentration. This type of ‘logarithmic sensing’ is similar to how our ears sense sounds and our eyes sense light. Kirkegaard et al. went on to conclude that the colonies were not actively steering in the correct direction directly. Instead, the colonies appeared to choose directions at random and later decide whether such a turn was correct. It remains unclear whether the common ancestor of animals and choanoflagellates could also perform aerotaxis, and if so what mechanisms this involved. Further studies to compare aerotaxis and aerotaxis-related genes in simple animals and other single-celled relatives of animals would be needed to illuminate this. Future studies could also explore the maximum and minimum oxygen concentrations that choanoflagellates can detect, and how well they navigate at these upper and lower limits. DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.18109.002
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Affiliation(s)
- Julius B Kirkegaard
- Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics, Centre for Mathematical Sciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Ambre Bouillant
- Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics, Centre for Mathematical Sciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Alan O Marron
- Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics, Centre for Mathematical Sciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Kyriacos C Leptos
- Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics, Centre for Mathematical Sciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Raymond E Goldstein
- Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics, Centre for Mathematical Sciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
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Abstract
Polyploidy-the increase in the number of whole chromosome sets-is an important evolutionary force in eukaryotes. Polyploidy is well recognized throughout the evolutionary history of plants and animals, where several ancient events have been hypothesized to be drivers of major evolutionary radiations. However, fungi provide a striking contrast: while numerous recent polyploids have been documented, ancient fungal polyploidy is virtually unknown. We present a survey of known fungal polyploids that confirms the absence of ancient fungal polyploidy events. Three hypotheses may explain this finding. First, ancient fungal polyploids are indeed rare, with unique aspects of fungal biology providing similar benefits without genome duplication. Second, fungal polyploids are not successful in the long term, leading to few extant species derived from ancient polyploidy events. Third, ancient fungal polyploids are difficult to detect, causing the real contribution of polyploidy to fungal evolution to be underappreciated. We consider each of these hypotheses in turn and propose that failure to detect ancient events is the most likely reason for the lack of observed ancient fungal polyploids. We examine whether existing data can provide evidence for previously unrecognized ancient fungal polyploidy events but discover that current resources are too limited. We contend that establishing whether unrecognized ancient fungal polyploidy events exist is important to ascertain whether polyploidy has played a key role in the evolution of the extensive complexity and diversity observed in fungi today and, thus, whether polyploidy is a driver of evolutionary diversifications across eukaryotes. Therefore, we conclude by suggesting ways to test the hypothesis that there are unrecognized polyploidy events in the deep evolutionary history of the fungi.
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49
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Burger G, Moreira S, Valach M. Genes in Hiding. Trends Genet 2016; 32:553-565. [PMID: 27460648 DOI: 10.1016/j.tig.2016.06.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2016] [Revised: 06/23/2016] [Accepted: 06/24/2016] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Unrecognizable genes are an unsettling problem in genomics. Here, we survey the various types of cryptic genes and the corresponding deciphering strategies employed by cells. Encryption that renders genes substantially different from homologs in other species includes sequence substitution, insertion, deletion, fragmentation plus scrambling, and invasion by mobile genetic elements. Cells decode cryptic genes at the DNA, RNA or protein level. We will focus on a recently discovered case of unparalleled encryption involving massive gene fragmentation and nucleotide deletions and substitutions, occurring in the mitochondrial genome of a poorly understood protist group, the diplonemids. This example illustrates that comprehensive gene detection requires not only auxiliary sequence information - transcriptome and proteome data - but also knowledge about a cell's deciphering arsenal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gertraud Burger
- Department of Biochemistry and Robert-Cedergren Centre for Bioinformatics and Genomics, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Canada.
| | - Sandrine Moreira
- Department of Biochemistry and Robert-Cedergren Centre for Bioinformatics and Genomics, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Canada
| | - Matus Valach
- Department of Biochemistry and Robert-Cedergren Centre for Bioinformatics and Genomics, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Canada
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50
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Bacterial lipids activate, synergize, and inhibit a developmental switch in choanoflagellates. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2016; 113:7894-9. [PMID: 27354530 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1605015113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 77] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
In choanoflagellates, the closest living relatives of animals, multicellular rosette development is regulated by environmental bacteria. The simplicity of this evolutionarily relevant interaction provides an opportunity to identify the molecules and regulatory logic underpinning bacterial regulation of development. We find that the rosette-inducing bacterium Algoriphagus machipongonensis produces three structurally divergent classes of bioactive lipids that, together, activate, enhance, and inhibit rosette development in the choanoflagellate Salpingoeca rosetta. One class of molecules, the lysophosphatidylethanolamines (LPEs), elicits no response on its own but synergizes with activating sulfonolipid rosette-inducing factors (RIFs) to recapitulate the full bioactivity of live Algoriphagus. LPEs, although ubiquitous in bacteria and eukaryotes, have not previously been implicated in the regulation of a host-microbe interaction. This study reveals that multiple bacterially produced lipids converge to activate, enhance, and inhibit multicellular development in a choanoflagellate.
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