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Anderson RP, Mughal S, Wedlake GO. Proterozoic microfossils continue to provide new insights into the rise of complex eukaryotic life. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2024; 11:240154. [PMID: 39170929 PMCID: PMC11336685 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.240154] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2024] [Revised: 07/11/2024] [Accepted: 07/12/2024] [Indexed: 08/23/2024]
Abstract
Eukaryotes have evolved to dominate the biosphere today, accounting for most documented living species and the vast majority of the Earth's biomass. Consequently, understanding how these biologically complex organisms initially diversified in the Proterozoic Eon over 539 million years ago is a foundational question in evolutionary biology. Over the last 70 years, palaeontologists have sought to document the rise of eukaryotes with fossil evidence. However, the delicate and microscopic nature of their sub-cellular features affords early eukaryotes diminished preservation potential. Chemical biomarker signatures of eukaryotes and the genetics of living eukaryotes have emerged as complementary tools for reconstructing eukaryote ancestry. In this review, we argue that exceptionally preserved Proterozoic microfossils are critical to interpreting these complementary tools, providing crucial calibrations to molecular clocks and testing hypotheses of palaeoecology. We highlight recent research on their preservation and biomolecular composition that offers new ways to enhance their utility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ross P. Anderson
- Museum of Natural History, University of Oxford, OxfordOX1 3PW, UK
- All Souls College, University of Oxford, OxfordOX1 4AL, UK
| | - Sanaa Mughal
- Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AlbertaT6G 2E3, Canada
| | - George O. Wedlake
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3AN, UK
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2
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Porfirio-Sousa AL, Tice AK, Morais L, Ribeiro GM, Blandenier Q, Dumack K, Eglit Y, Fry NW, Gomes E Souza MB, Henderson TC, Kleitz-Singleton F, Singer D, Brown MW, Lahr DJG. Amoebozoan testate amoebae illuminate the diversity of heterotrophs and the complexity of ecosystems throughout geological time. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2319628121. [PMID: 39012821 PMCID: PMC11287125 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2319628121] [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: 11/13/2023] [Accepted: 06/01/2024] [Indexed: 07/18/2024] Open
Abstract
Heterotrophic protists are vital in Earth's ecosystems, influencing carbon and nutrient cycles and occupying key positions in food webs as microbial predators. Fossils and molecular data suggest the emergence of predatory microeukaryotes and the transition to a eukaryote-rich marine environment by 800 million years ago (Ma). Neoproterozoic vase-shaped microfossils (VSMs) linked to Arcellinida testate amoebae represent the oldest evidence of heterotrophic microeukaryotes. This study explores the phylogenetic relationship and divergence times of modern Arcellinida and related taxa using a relaxed molecular clock approach. We estimate the origin of nodes leading to extant members of the Arcellinida Order to have happened during the latest Mesoproterozoic and Neoproterozoic (1054 to 661 Ma), while the divergence of extant infraorders postdates the Silurian. Our results demonstrate that at least one major heterotrophic eukaryote lineage originated during the Neoproterozoic. A putative radiation of eukaryotic groups (e.g., Arcellinida) during the early-Neoproterozoic sustained by favorable ecological and environmental conditions may have contributed to eukaryotic life endurance during the Cryogenian severe ice ages. Moreover, we infer that Arcellinida most likely already inhabited terrestrial habitats during the Neoproterozoic, coexisting with terrestrial Fungi and green algae, before land plant radiation. The most recent extant Arcellinida groups diverged during the Silurian Period, alongside other taxa within Fungi and flowering plants. These findings shed light on heterotrophic microeukaryotes' evolutionary history and ecological significance in Earth's ecosystems, using testate amoebae as a proxy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alfredo L. Porfirio-Sousa
- Department of Zoology, Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo05508-090, Brazil
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS39762
| | - Alexander K. Tice
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS39762
- Department of Biological Sciences, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX79409
| | - Luana Morais
- Department of Geophysics, Institute of Astronomy, Geophysics and Atmospheric Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo05508-090, Brazil
- Department of Applied Geology, Institute of Geosciences and Exact Sciences, São Paulo State University, Rio Claro13506-900, Brazil
| | - Giulia M. Ribeiro
- Department of Zoology, Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo05508-090, Brazil
| | - Quentin Blandenier
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS39762
| | - Kenneth Dumack
- Department of Terrestrial Ecology, Institute of Zoology, University of Cologne, Cologne50674, Germany
| | - Yana Eglit
- Department of Biology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NSB3H 4R2, Canada
- Department of Biology, Institute for Comparative Genomics, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NSV8P 3E6, Canada
- Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, BCV8P 3E6, Canada
| | - Nicholas W. Fry
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS39762
| | | | - Tristan C. Henderson
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS39762
| | | | - David Singer
- Soil Science and Environment Group, Changins, Haute école spécialisée de Suisse occidentale University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland, Nyon1148, Switzerland
| | - Matthew W. Brown
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS39762
- Department of Biological Sciences, Institute for Genomics, Biocomputing & Biotechnology, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS39762
| | - Daniel J. G. Lahr
- Department of Zoology, Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo05508-090, Brazil
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3
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Mrnjavac N, Degli Esposti M, Mizrahi I, Martin WF, Allen JF. Three enzymes governed the rise of O 2 on Earth. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA. BIOENERGETICS 2024; 1865:149495. [PMID: 39004113 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbabio.2024.149495] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2024] [Revised: 06/30/2024] [Accepted: 07/02/2024] [Indexed: 07/16/2024]
Abstract
Current views of O2 accumulation in Earth history depict three phases: The onset of O2 production by ∼2.4 billion years ago; 2 billion years of stasis at ∼1 % of modern atmospheric levels; and a rising phase, starting about 500 million years ago, in which oxygen eventually reached modern values. Purely geochemical mechanisms have been proposed to account for this tripartite time course of Earth oxygenation. In particular the second phase, the long period of stasis between the advent of O2 and the late rise to modern levels, has posed a puzzle. Proposed solutions involve Earth processes (geochemical, ecosystem, day length). Here we suggest that Earth oxygenation was not determined by geochemical processes. Rather it resulted from emergent biological innovations associated with photosynthesis and the activity of only three enzymes: 1) The oxygen evolving complex of cyanobacteria that makes O2; 2) Nitrogenase, with its inhibition by O2 causing two billion years of oxygen level stasis; 3) Cellulose synthase of land plants, which caused mass deposition and burial of carbon, thus removing an oxygen sink and therefore increasing atmospheric O2. These three enzymes are endogenously produced by, and contained within, cells that have the capacity for exponential growth. The catalytic properties of these three enzymes paved the path of Earth's atmospheric oxygenation, requiring no help from Earth other than the provision of water, CO2, salts, colonizable habitats, and sunlight.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natalia Mrnjavac
- Department of Biology, Institute for Molecular Evolution, Heinrich Heine University of Duesseldorf, Duesseldorf, Germany
| | | | - Itzhak Mizrahi
- Department of Life Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and the National Institute for Biotechnology in the Negev, Marcus Family Campus, Be'er-Sheva, Israel
| | - William F Martin
- Department of Biology, Institute for Molecular Evolution, Heinrich Heine University of Duesseldorf, Duesseldorf, Germany
| | - John F Allen
- Research Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, Gower Street, London, UK.
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4
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Hoshino Y, Gaucher EA. Impact of steroid biosynthesis on the aerobic adaptation of eukaryotes. GEOBIOLOGY 2024; 22:e12612. [PMID: 38967402 PMCID: PMC11234327 DOI: 10.1111/gbi.12612] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2023] [Revised: 06/20/2024] [Accepted: 06/24/2024] [Indexed: 07/06/2024]
Abstract
Steroids are indispensable components of the eukaryotic cellular membrane and the acquisition of steroid biosynthesis was a key factor that enabled the evolution of eukaryotes. The polycyclic carbon structures of steroids can be preserved in sedimentary rocks as chemical fossils for billions of years and thus provide invaluable clues to trace eukaryotic evolution from the distant past. Steroid biosynthesis consists of (1) the production of protosteroids and (2) the subsequent modifications toward "modern-type" steroids such as cholesterol and stigmasterol. While protosteroid biosynthesis requires only two genes for the cyclization of squalene, complete modification of protosteroids involves ~10 additional genes. Eukaryotes universally possess at least some of those additional genes and thus produce modern-type steroids as major final products. The geological biomarker records suggest a prolonged period of solely protosteroid production in the mid-Proterozoic before the advent of modern-type steroids in the Neoproterozoic. It has been proposed that mid-Proterozoic protosteroids were produced by hypothetical stem-group eukaryotes that presumably possessed genes only for protosteroid production, even though in modern environments protosteroid production as a final product is found exclusively in bacteria. The host identity of mid-Proterozoic steroid producers is crucial for understanding the early evolution of eukaryotes. In this perspective, we discuss how geological biomarker data and genetic data complement each other and potentially provide a more coherent scenario for the evolution of steroids and associated early eukaryotes. We further discuss the potential impacts that steroids had on the evolution of aerobic metabolism in eukaryotes, which may have been an important factor for the eventual ecological dominance of eukaryotes in many modern environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yosuke Hoshino
- GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences, Potsdam, Germany
- Institute for Advanced Research, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Japan
- Synchrotron Radiation Research Center, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Japan
| | - Eric A Gaucher
- Department of Biology, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
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5
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Mrnjavac N, Nagies FSP, Wimmer JLE, Kapust N, Knopp MR, Trost K, Modjewski L, Bremer N, Mentel M, Esposti MD, Mizrahi I, Allen JF, Martin WF. The radical impact of oxygen on prokaryotic evolution-enzyme inhibition first, uninhibited essential biosyntheses second, aerobic respiration third. FEBS Lett 2024; 598:1692-1714. [PMID: 38750628 PMCID: PMC7616280 DOI: 10.1002/1873-3468.14906] [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: 02/13/2024] [Revised: 04/12/2024] [Accepted: 04/19/2024] [Indexed: 07/15/2024]
Abstract
Molecular oxygen is a stable diradical. All O2-dependent enzymes employ a radical mechanism. Generated by cyanobacteria, O2 started accumulating on Earth 2.4 billion years ago. Its evolutionary impact is traditionally sought in respiration and energy yield. We mapped 365 O2-dependent enzymatic reactions of prokaryotes to phylogenies for the corresponding 792 protein families. The main physiological adaptations imparted by O2-dependent enzymes were not energy conservation, but novel organic substrate oxidations and O2-dependent, hence O2-tolerant, alternative pathways for O2-inhibited reactions. Oxygen-dependent enzymes evolved in ancestrally anaerobic pathways for essential cofactor biosynthesis including NAD+, pyridoxal, thiamine, ubiquinone, cobalamin, heme, and chlorophyll. These innovations allowed prokaryotes to synthesize essential cofactors in O2-containing environments, a prerequisite for the later emergence of aerobic respiratory chains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natalia Mrnjavac
- Institute of Molecular Evolution, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Falk S P Nagies
- Institute of Molecular Evolution, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Jessica L E Wimmer
- Institute of Molecular Evolution, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Nils Kapust
- Institute of Molecular Evolution, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Michael R Knopp
- Institute of Molecular Evolution, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Katharina Trost
- Institute of Molecular Evolution, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Luca Modjewski
- Institute of Molecular Evolution, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Nico Bremer
- Institute of Molecular Evolution, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Marek Mentel
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Comenius University in Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | | | - Itzhak Mizrahi
- Department of Life Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and The National Institute for Biotechnology in the Negev, Be'er-Sheva, Israel
| | - John F Allen
- Research Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, UK
| | - William F Martin
- Institute of Molecular Evolution, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Germany
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6
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Eliason O, Malitsky S, Panizel I, Feldmesser E, Porat Z, Sperfeld M, Segev E. The photo-protective role of vitamin D in the microalga Emiliania huxleyi. iScience 2024; 27:109884. [PMID: 38799580 PMCID: PMC11126961 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.109884] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2024] [Revised: 04/16/2024] [Accepted: 04/30/2024] [Indexed: 05/29/2024] Open
Abstract
An essential interaction between sunlight and eukaryotes involves vitamin D production through exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation. While extensively studied in vertebrates, the role of vitamin D in non-animal eukaryotes like microalgae remains unclear. Here, we investigate the potential involvement of vitamin D in the UV-triggered response of Emiliania huxleyi, a microalga inhabiting shallow ocean depths that are exposed to UV. Our results show that E. huxleyi produces vitamin D2 and D3 in response to UV. We further demonstrate that E. huxleyi responds to external administration of vitamin D at the transcriptional level, regulating protective mechanisms that are also responsive to UV. Our data reveal that vitamin D addition enhances algal photosynthetic performance while reducing harmful reactive oxygen species buildup. This study contributes to understanding the function of vitamin D in E. huxleyi and its role in non-animal eukaryotes, as well as its potential importance in marine ecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Or Eliason
- Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 7610001, Israel
| | - Sergey Malitsky
- Department of Life Sciences Core Facilities, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 7610001, Israel
| | - Irina Panizel
- Department of Life Sciences Core Facilities, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 7610001, Israel
| | - Ester Feldmesser
- Department of Life Sciences Core Facilities, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 7610001, Israel
| | - Ziv Porat
- Department of Life Sciences Core Facilities, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 7610001, Israel
| | - Martin Sperfeld
- Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 7610001, Israel
| | - Einat Segev
- Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 7610001, Israel
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7
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Cox RM, Papoulas O, Shril S, Lee C, Gardner T, Battenhouse AM, Lee M, Drew K, McWhite CD, Yang D, Leggere JC, Durand D, Hildebrandt F, Wallingford JB, Marcotte EM. Ancient eukaryotic protein interactions illuminate modern genetic traits and disorders. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.05.26.595818. [PMID: 38853926 PMCID: PMC11160598 DOI: 10.1101/2024.05.26.595818] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2024]
Abstract
All eukaryotes share a common ancestor from roughly 1.5 - 1.8 billion years ago, a single-celled, swimming microbe known as LECA, the Last Eukaryotic Common Ancestor. Nearly half of the genes in modern eukaryotes were present in LECA, and many current genetic diseases and traits stem from these ancient molecular systems. To better understand these systems, we compared genes across modern organisms and identified a core set of 10,092 shared protein-coding gene families likely present in LECA, a quarter of which are uncharacterized. We then integrated >26,000 mass spectrometry proteomics analyses from 31 species to infer how these proteins interact in higher-order complexes. The resulting interactome describes the biochemical organization of LECA, revealing both known and new assemblies. We analyzed these ancient protein interactions to find new human gene-disease relationships for bone density and congenital birth defects, demonstrating the value of ancestral protein interactions for guiding functional genetics today.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rachael M Cox
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - Ophelia Papoulas
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - Shirlee Shril
- Division of Nephrology, Department of Pediatrics, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215, USA
| | - Chanjae Lee
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - Tynan Gardner
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - Anna M Battenhouse
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - Muyoung Lee
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - Kevin Drew
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60607, USA
| | - Claire D McWhite
- Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
| | - David Yang
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - Janelle C Leggere
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - Dannie Durand
- Department of Biological Sciences, Carnegie Mellon University, 4400 5th Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
| | - Friedhelm Hildebrandt
- Division of Nephrology, Department of Pediatrics, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215, USA
| | - John B Wallingford
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - Edward M Marcotte
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
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8
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Perotti O, Esparza GV, Booth DS. A red algal polysaccharide influences the multicellular development of the choanoflagellate Salpingoeca rosetta. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.05.14.594265. [PMID: 38798503 PMCID: PMC11118467 DOI: 10.1101/2024.05.14.594265] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/29/2024]
Abstract
We uncovered an interaction between a choanoflagellate and alga, in which porphyran, a polysaccharide produced by the red alga Porphyra umbilicalis, induces multicellular development in the choanoflagellate Salpingoeca rosetta. We first noticed this possible interaction when we tested the growth of S. rosetta in media that was steeped with P. umbilicalis as a nutritional source. Under those conditions, S. rosetta formed multicellular rosette colonies even in the absence of any bacterial species that can induce rosette development. In biochemical purifications, we identified porphyran, a extracellular polysaccharide produced by red algae, as the rosette inducing factor The response of S. rosetta to porphyran provides a biochemical insight for associations between choanoflagellates and algae that have been observed since the earliest descriptions of choanoflagellates. Moreover, this work provides complementary evidence to ecological and geochemical studies that show the profound impact algae have exerted on eukaryotes and their evolution, including a rise in algal productivity that coincided with the origin of animals, the closest living relatives of choanoflagellates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olivia Perotti
- Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine Genentech Hall, 600 16 St, San Francisco, CA 94143
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine Genentech Hall, 600 16 St, San Francisco, CA 94143
- Present address: Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544
| | - Gabriel Viramontes Esparza
- Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine Genentech Hall, 600 16 St, San Francisco, CA 94143
- Tetrad Graduate Group, University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine Genentech Hall, 600 16 St, San Francisco, CA 94143
| | - David S. Booth
- Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine Genentech Hall, 600 16 St, San Francisco, CA 94143
- Tetrad Graduate Group, University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine Genentech Hall, 600 16 St, San Francisco, CA 94143
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine Genentech Hall, 600 16 St, San Francisco, CA 94143
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9
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Yu Y, Li YP, Ren K, Hao X, Fru EC, Rønn R, Rivera WL, Becker K, Feng R, Yang J, Rensing C. A brief history of metal recruitment in protozoan predation. Trends Microbiol 2024; 32:465-476. [PMID: 38103995 DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2023.11.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2023] [Revised: 11/20/2023] [Accepted: 11/23/2023] [Indexed: 12/19/2023]
Abstract
Metals and metalloids are used as weapons for predatory feeding by unicellular eukaryotes on prokaryotes. This review emphasizes the role of metal(loid) bioavailability over the course of Earth's history, coupled with eukaryogenesis and the evolution of the mitochondrion to trace the emergence and use of the metal(loid) prey-killing phagosome as a feeding strategy. Members of the genera Acanthamoeba and Dictyostelium use metals such as zinc (Zn) and copper (Cu), and possibly metalloids, to kill their bacterial prey after phagocytosis. We provide a potential timeline on when these capacities first evolved and how they correlate with perceived changes in metal(loid) bioavailability through Earth's history. The origin of phagotrophic eukaryotes must have postdated the Great Oxidation Event (GOE) in agreement with redox-dependent modification of metal(loid) bioavailability for phagotrophic poisoning. However, this predatory mechanism is predicted to have evolved much later - closer to the origin of the multicellular metazoans and the evolutionary development of the immune systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yanshuang Yu
- Institute of Environmental Microbiology, College of Resources and Environment, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Fujian 350002, China
| | - Yuan-Ping Li
- Institute of Environmental Microbiology, College of Resources and Environment, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Fujian 350002, China
| | - Kexin Ren
- Aquatic EcoHealth Group, Fujian Key Laboratory of Watershed Ecology, Key Laboratory of Urban Environment and Health, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen 361021, China
| | - Xiuli Hao
- Hubei Key Laboratory of Soil Environment and Pollution Remediation, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China
| | - Ernest Chi Fru
- Centre for Geobiology and Geochemistry, School of Earth and Ocean Sciences, Cardiff University, CF10 3AT Cardiff, UK
| | - Regin Rønn
- Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Windell L Rivera
- Pathogen-Host-Environment Interactions Research Laboratory, Institute of Biology, College of Science, University of the Philippines Diliman, Quezon City 1101, Philippines
| | - Karsten Becker
- Friedrich Loeffler-Institute for Medical Microbiology, University Medicine Greifswald, D-17489 Greifswald, Germany
| | - Renwei Feng
- Institute of Environmental Microbiology, College of Resources and Environment, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Fujian 350002, China
| | - Jun Yang
- Aquatic EcoHealth Group, Fujian Key Laboratory of Watershed Ecology, Key Laboratory of Urban Environment and Health, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen 361021, China.
| | - Christopher Rensing
- Institute of Environmental Microbiology, College of Resources and Environment, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Fujian 350002, China.
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10
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Kim TK, Slominski RM, Pyza E, Kleszczynski K, Tuckey RC, Reiter RJ, Holick MF, Slominski AT. Evolutionary formation of melatonin and vitamin D in early life forms: insects take centre stage. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2024. [PMID: 38686544 DOI: 10.1111/brv.13091] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2023] [Revised: 04/11/2024] [Accepted: 04/17/2024] [Indexed: 05/02/2024]
Abstract
Melatonin, a product of tryptophan metabolism via serotonin, is a molecule with an indole backbone that is widely produced by bacteria, unicellular eukaryotic organisms, plants, fungi and all animal taxa. Aside from its role in the regulation of circadian rhythms, it has diverse biological actions including regulation of cytoprotective responses and other functions crucial for survival across different species. The latter properties are also shared by its metabolites including kynuric products generated by reactive oxygen species or phototransfomation induced by ultraviolet radiation. Vitamins D and related photoproducts originate from phototransformation of ∆5,7 sterols, of which 7-dehydrocholesterol and ergosterol are examples. Their ∆5,7 bonds in the B ring absorb solar ultraviolet radiation [290-315 nm, ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation] resulting in B ring opening to produce previtamin D, also referred to as a secosteroid. Once formed, previtamin D can either undergo thermal-induced isomerization to vitamin D or absorb UVB radiation to be transformed into photoproducts including lumisterol and tachysterol. Vitamin D, as well as the previtamin D photoproducts lumisterol and tachysterol, are hydroxylated by cyochrome P450 (CYP) enzymes to produce biologically active hydroxyderivatives. The best known of these is 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D (1,25(OH)2D) for which the major function in vertebrates is regulation of calcium and phosphorus metabolism. Herein we review data on melatonin production and metabolism and discuss their functions in insects. We discuss production of previtamin D and vitamin D, and their photoproducts in fungi, plants and insects, as well as mechanisms for their enzymatic activation and suggest possible biological functions for them in these groups of organisms. For the detection of these secosteroids and their precursors and photoderivatives, as well as melatonin metabolites, we focus on honey produced by bees and on body extracts of Drosophila melanogaster. Common biological functions for melatonin derivatives and secosteroids such as cytoprotective and photoprotective actions in insects are discussed. We provide hypotheses for the photoproduction of other secosteroids and of kynuric metabolites of melatonin, based on the known photobiology of ∆5,7 sterols and of the indole ring, respectively. We also offer possible mechanisms of actions for these unique molecules and summarise differences and similarities of melatoninergic and secosteroidogenic pathways in diverse organisms including insects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tae-Kang Kim
- Department of Dermatology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, 35294, USA
| | - Radomir M Slominski
- Department of Genetics, Genomics, Bioinformatics and Informatics Institute, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, 35294, USA
| | - Elzbieta Pyza
- Department of Cell Biology and Imaging, Institute of Zoology and Biomedical Research, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 9, Kraków, 30-387, Poland
| | - Konrad Kleszczynski
- Department of Dermatology, Münster, Von-Esmarch-Str. 58, Münster, 48161, Germany
| | - Robert C Tuckey
- School of Molecular Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, 6009, Australia
| | - Russel J Reiter
- Department of Cell Systems and Anatomy, UT Health, Long School of Medicine, San Antonio, TX, 78229, USA
| | | | - Andrzej T Slominski
- Department of Dermatology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, 35294, USA
- Comprehensive Cancer Center, Cancer Chemoprevention Program, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, 35294, USA
- VA Medical Center, Birmingham, AL, 35294, USA
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11
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Okayama A, Hoshino T, Wada K, Takahashi H. Comparison of structural effects of cholesterol, lanosterol, and oxysterol on phospholipid (POPC) bilayers. Chem Phys Lipids 2024; 259:105376. [PMID: 38325710 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemphyslip.2024.105376] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2023] [Revised: 12/26/2023] [Accepted: 01/31/2024] [Indexed: 02/09/2024]
Abstract
Membrane sterols contribute to the function of biomembranes by regulating the physical properties of the lipid bilayers. Cholesterol, a typical mammalian sterol, is biosynthesized by oxidation of lanosterol. From a molecular evolutionary perspective, lanosterol is considered the ancestral molecule of cholesterol. Here, we studied whether cholesterol is superior to lanosterol in regulating the physical properties of the lipid bilayer in terms of the structural effect on model biomembranes composed of a phospholipid. For comparison, oxysterol, which is formed by oxidation of cholesterol, was also studied. The phospholipid used was 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (POPC), which is abundantly found in mammalian biomembranes, and 7β-hydroxycholesterol, which is highly cytotoxic, was used as the oxysterol. The apparent molecular volume was calculated from the mass density determined by the flotation method using H2O and D2O, and the bilayer thickness was determined by reconstructing the electron density distribution from X-ray diffraction data of the POPC/sterol mixtures at a sterol concentration of 30 mol%. The apparent occupied area at the bilayer surface was calculated from the above two structural data. The cholesterol system had the thickest bilayer thickness and the smallest occupied area of the three sterols studied here. This indicates that the POPC/cholesterol bilayer has a better barrier property than the other two systems. Compared to cholesterol, the effects of lanosterol and 7β-hydroxycholesterol on lipid bilayer properties can be interpreted as suboptimal for the function of mammalian biomembranes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ayumi Okayama
- Division of Pure and Applied Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, Gunma University, 4-2 Aramaki, Maebashi, Gunma 371-8510, Japan
| | - Tatsuya Hoshino
- Division of Pure and Applied Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, Gunma University, 4-2 Aramaki, Maebashi, Gunma 371-8510, Japan
| | - Kohei Wada
- Division of Pure and Applied Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, Gunma University, 4-2 Aramaki, Maebashi, Gunma 371-8510, Japan
| | - Hiroshi Takahashi
- Division of Pure and Applied Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, Gunma University, 4-2 Aramaki, Maebashi, Gunma 371-8510, Japan.
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12
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Romero H, Aguilar PS, Graña M, Langleib M, Gudiño V, Podbilewicz B. Membrane fusion and fission during eukaryogenesis. Curr Opin Cell Biol 2024; 86:102321. [PMID: 38219525 DOI: 10.1016/j.ceb.2023.102321] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2023] [Revised: 12/22/2023] [Accepted: 12/25/2023] [Indexed: 01/16/2024]
Abstract
All eukaryotes can be traced back to a single shared ancestral lineage that emerged from interactions between different prokaryotic cells. Current models of eukaryogenesis describe various selective forces and evolutionary mechanisms that contributed to the formation of eukaryotic cells. Central to this process were significant changes in cellular structure, resulting in the configuration of a new cell type characterized by internal membrane compartments. Additionally, eukaryogenesis results in a life cycle that relies on cell-cell fusion. We discuss the potential roles of proteins involved in remodeling cellular membranes, highlighting two critical stages in the evolution of eukaryotes: the internalization of symbiotic partners and a scenario wherein the emergence of sexual reproduction is linked to a polyploid ancestor generated by cell-cell fusion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Héctor Romero
- Laboratorio de Genómica Evolutiva, Facultad de Ciencias/CURE, Universidad de la República, Uruguay; Centro Interdisciplinario de Ciencia de Datos y Aprendizaje Automático (CICADA), Espacio Interdisciplinario, Universidad de la República, Uruguay.
| | - Pablo S Aguilar
- Instituto de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Neurociencias (IFIBYNE-CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina.
| | - Martin Graña
- Unidad de Bioinformática, Institut Pasteur de Montevideo, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Mauricio Langleib
- Laboratorio de Genómica Evolutiva, Facultad de Ciencias/CURE, Universidad de la República, Uruguay; Unidad de Bioinformática, Institut Pasteur de Montevideo, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Virginia Gudiño
- Instituto de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Neurociencias (IFIBYNE-CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Benjamin Podbilewicz
- Department of Biology, Technion Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel; Instituto de Fisiología Celular, UNAM, Mexico City, Mexico
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13
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Miao L, Yin Z, Knoll AH, Qu Y, Zhu M. 1.63-billion-year-old multicellular eukaryotes from the Chuanlinggou Formation in North China. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2024; 10:eadk3208. [PMID: 38266082 PMCID: PMC10807817 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adk3208] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2023] [Accepted: 12/21/2023] [Indexed: 01/26/2024]
Abstract
Multicellularity is key to the functional and ecological success of the Eukarya, underpinning much of their modern diversity in both terrestrial and marine ecosystems. Despite the widespread occurrence of simple multicellular organisms among eukaryotes, when this innovation arose remains an open question. Here, we report cellularly preserved multicellular microfossils (Qingshania magnifica) from the ~1635-million-year-old Chuanlinggou Formation, North China. The fossils consist of large uniseriate, unbranched filaments with cell diameters up to 190 micrometers; spheroidal structures, possibly spores, occur within some cells. In combination with spectroscopic characteristics, the large size and morphological complexity of these fossils support their interpretation as eukaryotes, likely photosynthetic, based on comparisons with extant organisms. The occurrence of multicellular eukaryotes in Paleoproterozoic rocks not much younger than those containing the oldest unambiguous evidence of eukaryotes as a whole supports the hypothesis that simple multicellularity arose early in eukaryotic history, as much as a billion years before complex multicellular organisms diversified in the oceans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lanyun Miao
- State Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China
| | - Zongjun Yin
- State Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China
| | - Andrew H. Knoll
- Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Yuangao Qu
- Institute of Deep-sea Science and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Sanya 572000, China
| | - Maoyan Zhu
- State Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China
- College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
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14
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Mills DB, Simister RL, Sehein TR, Hallam SJ, Sperling EA, Crowe SA. Constraining the oxygen requirements for modern microbial eukaryote diversity. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2303754120. [PMID: 38165897 PMCID: PMC10786294 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2303754120] [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: 03/06/2023] [Accepted: 11/07/2023] [Indexed: 01/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Eukaryotes originated prior to the establishment of modern marine oxygen (O2) levels. According to the body fossil and lipid biomarker records, modern (crown) microbial eukaryote lineages began diversifying in the ocean no later than ~800 Ma. While it has long been predicted that increasing atmospheric O2 levels facilitated the early diversification of microbial eukaryotes, the O2 levels needed to permit this diversification remain unconstrained. Using time-resolved geochemical parameter and gene sequence information from a model marine oxygen minimum zone spanning a range of dissolved O2 levels and redox states, we show that microbial eukaryote taxonomic richness and phylogenetic diversity remain the same until O2 declines to around 2 to 3% of present atmospheric levels, below which these diversity metrics become significantly reduced. Our observations suggest that increasing O2 would have only directly promoted early crown-eukaryote diversity if atmospheric O2 was below 2 to 3% of modern levels when crown-eukaryotes originated and then later met or surpassed this range as crown-eukaryotes diversified. If atmospheric O2 was already consistently at or above 2 to 3% of modern levels by the time that crown-eukaryotes originated, then the subsequent diversification of modern microbial eukaryotes was not directly driven by atmospheric oxygenation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel B. Mills
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Paleontology and Geobiology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 80333Munich, Germany
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA94305
- The Penn State Extraterrestrial Intelligence Center, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA16802
| | - Rachel L. Simister
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BCV6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - Taylor R. Sehein
- Department of Biological Sciences, Smith College, Northampton, MA01063
| | - Steven J. Hallam
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BCV6T 1Z4, Canada
- Genome Science and Technology Program, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BCV6T 1Z4, Canada
- Graduate Program in Bioinformatics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BCV6T 1Z4, Canada
- Life Sciences Institute, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BCV6T 1Z3, Canada
- Bradshaw Research Initiative for Minerals and Mining, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BCV6T 1Z4, Canada
- Ecosystem Services, Commercialization Platforms and Entrepreneurship (ECOSCOPE) Training Program, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BCV6T 1Z3, Canada
| | - Erik A. Sperling
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA94305
| | - Sean A. Crowe
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BCV6T 1Z4, Canada
- Department of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BCV6T 1Z4, Canada
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15
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Brunoir T, Mulligan C, Sistiaga A, Vuu KM, Shih PM, O'Reilly SS, Summons RE, Gold DA. Common origin of sterol biosynthesis points to a feeding strategy shift in Neoproterozoic animals. Nat Commun 2023; 14:7941. [PMID: 38040676 PMCID: PMC10692144 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-43545-z] [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: 03/06/2023] [Accepted: 11/13/2023] [Indexed: 12/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Steranes preserved in sedimentary rocks serve as molecular fossils, which are thought to record the expansion of eukaryote life through the Neoproterozoic Era ( ~ 1000-541 Ma). Scientists hypothesize that ancient C27 steranes originated from cholesterol, the major sterol produced by living red algae and animals. Similarly, C28 and C29 steranes are thought to be derived from the sterols of prehistoric fungi, green algae, and other microbial eukaryotes. However, recent work on annelid worms-an advanced group of eumetazoan animals-shows that they are also capable of producing C28 and C29 sterols. In this paper, we explore the evolutionary history of the 24-C sterol methyltransferase (smt) gene in animals, which is required to make C28+ sterols. We find evidence that the smt gene was vertically inherited through animals, suggesting early eumetazoans were capable of C28+ sterol synthesis. Our molecular clock of the animal smt gene demonstrates that its diversification coincides with the rise of C28 and C29 steranes in the Neoproterozoic. This study supports the hypothesis that early eumetazoans were capable of making C28+ sterols and that many animal lineages independently abandoned its biosynthesis around the end-Neoproterozoic, coinciding with the rise of abundant eukaryotic prey.
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Affiliation(s)
- T Brunoir
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, USA
| | - C Mulligan
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, USA
| | - A Sistiaga
- Globe Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - K M Vuu
- Joint BioEnergy Institute, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - P M Shih
- Joint BioEnergy Institute, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - S S O'Reilly
- Department of Life Sciences, Atlantic Technological University, ATU Sligo, Ash Lane, Sligo, Ireland
| | - R E Summons
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - D A Gold
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, USA.
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16
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Jin Z, Wang X, Wang H, Ye Y, Zhang S. Organic carbon cycling and black shale deposition: an Earth System Science perspective. Natl Sci Rev 2023; 10:nwad243. [PMID: 37900193 PMCID: PMC10612131 DOI: 10.1093/nsr/nwad243] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2023] [Revised: 08/15/2023] [Accepted: 08/27/2023] [Indexed: 10/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Earth has a prolonged history characterized by substantial cycling of matter and energy between multiple spheres. The production of organic carbon can be traced back to as early as ∼4.0 Ga, but the frequency and scale of organic-rich shales have varied markedly over geological time. In this paper, we discuss the organic carbon cycle and the development of black shale from the perspective of Earth System Science. We propose that black shale depositions are the results of interactions among lithospheric evolution, orbital forcing, weathering, photosynthesis and degradation. Black shales can record Earth's oxygenation process, provide petroleum and metallic mineral resources and reveal information about the driver, direction and magnitude of climate change. Future research on black shales should be expanded to encompass a more extensive and more multidimensional perspective.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhijun Jin
- Institute of Energy, Peking University, Beijing100871, China
| | - Xiaomei Wang
- Key Laboratory of Petroleum Geochemistry, Central Laboratory of Geological Sciences, Research Institute of Petroleum Exploration and Development, China National Petroleum Corporation, Beijing100083, China
| | - Huajian Wang
- Key Laboratory of Petroleum Geochemistry, Central Laboratory of Geological Sciences, Research Institute of Petroleum Exploration and Development, China National Petroleum Corporation, Beijing100083, China
| | - Yuntao Ye
- Key Laboratory of Petroleum Geochemistry, Central Laboratory of Geological Sciences, Research Institute of Petroleum Exploration and Development, China National Petroleum Corporation, Beijing100083, China
- Key Laboratory of Orogenic Belts and Crustal Evolution, Ministry of Education, School of Earth and Space Sciences, Peking University, Beijing100871, China
| | - Shuichang Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Petroleum Geochemistry, Central Laboratory of Geological Sciences, Research Institute of Petroleum Exploration and Development, China National Petroleum Corporation, Beijing100083, China
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17
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Harvey THP. Colonial green algae in the Cambrian plankton. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20231882. [PMID: 37876191 PMCID: PMC10598416 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.1882] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2023] [Accepted: 09/28/2023] [Indexed: 10/26/2023] Open
Abstract
The fossil record indicates a major turnover in marine phytoplankton across the Ediacaran-Cambrian transition, coincident with the rise of animal-rich ecosystems. However, the diversity, affinities and ecologies of Cambrian phytoplankton are poorly understood, leaving unclear the role of animal interactions and the drivers of diversification. New exceptionally preserved acritarchs (problematic organic-walled microfossils) from the late early Cambrian (around 510 Ma) reveal colonial organization characterized by rings and plates of interconnected, geometrically arranged cells. The assemblage exhibits a wide but gradational variation in cell size, ornamentation and intercell connection, interpreted as representing one or more species with determinate (coenobial) colony formation via cell division, aggregation and growth by cell expansion. An equivalent strategy is known only among green algae, specifically chlorophycean chlorophytes. The fossils differ in detail from modern freshwater examples and apparently represent an earlier convergent radiation in marine settings. Known trade-offs between sinking risk and predator avoidance in colonial phytoplankton point to adaptations triggered by intensifying grazing pressure during a Cambrian metazoan invasion of the water column. The new fossils reveal that not all small acritarchs are unicellular resting cysts, and support an early Palaeozoic prominence of green algal phytoplankton as predicted by molecular biomarkers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas H. P. Harvey
- Centre for Palaeobiology and Biosphere Evolution, School of Geography, Geology and the Environment, University of Leicester, University Road, Leicester LE1 7RH, UK
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18
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Moniruzzaman M, Erazo Garcia MP, Farzad R, Ha AD, Jivaji A, Karki S, Sheyn U, Stanton J, Minch B, Stephens D, Hancks DC, Rodrigues RAL, Abrahao JS, Vardi A, Aylward FO. Virologs, viral mimicry, and virocell metabolism: the expanding scale of cellular functions encoded in the complex genomes of giant viruses. FEMS Microbiol Rev 2023; 47:fuad053. [PMID: 37740576 PMCID: PMC10583209 DOI: 10.1093/femsre/fuad053] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2023] [Revised: 08/29/2023] [Accepted: 09/21/2023] [Indexed: 09/24/2023] Open
Abstract
The phylum Nucleocytoviricota includes the largest and most complex viruses known. These "giant viruses" have a long evolutionary history that dates back to the early diversification of eukaryotes, and over time they have evolved elaborate strategies for manipulating the physiology of their hosts during infection. One of the most captivating of these mechanisms involves the use of genes acquired from the host-referred to here as viral homologs or "virologs"-as a means of promoting viral propagation. The best-known examples of these are involved in mimicry, in which viral machinery "imitates" immunomodulatory elements in the vertebrate defense system. But recent findings have highlighted a vast and rapidly expanding array of other virologs that include many genes not typically found in viruses, such as those involved in translation, central carbon metabolism, cytoskeletal structure, nutrient transport, vesicular trafficking, and light harvesting. Unraveling the roles of virologs during infection as well as the evolutionary pathways through which complex functional repertoires are acquired by viruses are important frontiers at the forefront of giant virus research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohammad Moniruzzaman
- Rosenstiel School of Marine Atmospheric, and Earth Science, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL 33149, United States
| | - Maria Paula Erazo Garcia
- Department of Biological Sciences, Virginia Tech, 926 West Campus Drive, Blacksburg, VA 24061, United States
| | - Roxanna Farzad
- Department of Biological Sciences, Virginia Tech, 926 West Campus Drive, Blacksburg, VA 24061, United States
| | - Anh D Ha
- Department of Biological Sciences, Virginia Tech, 926 West Campus Drive, Blacksburg, VA 24061, United States
| | - Abdeali Jivaji
- Department of Biological Sciences, Virginia Tech, 926 West Campus Drive, Blacksburg, VA 24061, United States
| | - Sangita Karki
- Department of Biological Sciences, Virginia Tech, 926 West Campus Drive, Blacksburg, VA 24061, United States
| | - Uri Sheyn
- Department of Biological Sciences, Virginia Tech, 926 West Campus Drive, Blacksburg, VA 24061, United States
| | - Joshua Stanton
- Department of Biological Sciences, Virginia Tech, 926 West Campus Drive, Blacksburg, VA 24061, United States
| | - Benjamin Minch
- Rosenstiel School of Marine Atmospheric, and Earth Science, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL 33149, United States
| | - Danae Stephens
- Rosenstiel School of Marine Atmospheric, and Earth Science, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL 33149, United States
| | - Dustin C Hancks
- Department of Immunology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, 6000 Harry Hines Blvd, Dallas, TX, United States
| | - Rodrigo A L Rodrigues
- Laboratório de Vírus, Departamento de Microbiologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte 31270-901, MG, Brazil
| | - Jonatas S Abrahao
- Laboratório de Vírus, Departamento de Microbiologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte 31270-901, MG, Brazil
| | - Assaf Vardi
- Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, 7610001 Rehovot, Israel
| | - Frank O Aylward
- Department of Biological Sciences, Virginia Tech, 926 West Campus Drive, Blacksburg, VA 24061, United States
- Center for Emerging, Zoonotic, and Arthropod-Borne Infectious Disease, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, United States
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19
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Zhang X, Paoletti MM, Izon G, Fournier GP, Summons RE. Late acquisition of the rTCA carbon fixation pathway by Chlorobi. Nat Ecol Evol 2023; 7:1398-1407. [PMID: 37537385 DOI: 10.1038/s41559-023-02147-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2023] [Accepted: 06/30/2023] [Indexed: 08/05/2023]
Abstract
The reverse tricarboxylic acid (rTCA) cycle is touted as a primordial mode of carbon fixation due to its autocatalytic propensity and oxygen intolerance. Despite this inferred antiquity, however, the earliest rock record affords scant supporting evidence. In fact, based on the chimeric inheritance of rTCA cycle steps within the Chlorobiaceae, even the use of the chemical fossil record of this group is now subject to question. While the 1.64-billion-year-old Barney Creek Formation contains chemical fossils of the earliest known putative Chlorobiaceae-derived carotenoids, interferences from the accompanying hydrocarbon matrix have hitherto precluded the carbon isotope measurements necessary to establish the physiology of the organisms that produced them. Overcoming this obstacle, here we report a suite of compound-specific carbon isotope measurements identifying a cyanobacterially dominated ecosystem featuring heterotrophic bacteria. We demonstrate chlorobactane is 13C-depleted when compared to contemporary equivalents, showing only slight 13C-enrichment over co-existing cyanobacterial carotenoids. The absence of this diagnostic isotopic fingerprint, in turn, confirms phylogenomic hypotheses that call for the late assembly of the rTCA cycle and, thus, the delayed acquisition of autotrophy within the Chlorobiaceae. We suggest that progressive oxygenation of the Earth System caused an increase in the marine sulfate inventory thereby providing the selective pressure to fuel the Neoproterozoic shift towards energy-efficient photoautotrophy within the Chlorobiaceae.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaowen Zhang
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA.
- School of Oceanography, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.
| | - Madeline M Paoletti
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Gareth Izon
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Gregory P Fournier
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Roger E Summons
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA.
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20
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Ledford H. A 'lost world' of early microbes thrived one billion years ago. Nature 2023:10.1038/d41586-023-01847-8. [PMID: 37286684 DOI: 10.1038/d41586-023-01847-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
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21
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Kenig F. Infancy of sterol biosynthesis hints at extinct eukaryotic species. Nature 2023:10.1038/d41586-023-01816-1. [PMID: 37286675 DOI: 10.1038/d41586-023-01816-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
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