1
|
Larson BT. Perspectives on Principles of Cellular Behavior from the Biophysics of Protists. Integr Comp Biol 2023; 63:1405-1421. [PMID: 37496203 PMCID: PMC10755178 DOI: 10.1093/icb/icad106] [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: 03/22/2023] [Revised: 07/14/2023] [Accepted: 07/17/2023] [Indexed: 07/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Cells are the fundamental unit of biological organization. Although it may be easy to think of them as little more than the simple building blocks of complex organisms such as animals, single cells are capable of behaviors of remarkable apparent sophistication. This is abundantly clear when considering the diversity of form and function among the microbial eukaryotes, the protists. How might we navigate this diversity in the search for general principles of cellular behavior? Here, we review cases in which the intensive study of protists from the perspective of cellular biophysics has driven insight into broad biological questions of morphogenesis, navigation and motility, and decision making. We argue that applying such approaches to questions of evolutionary cell biology presents rich, emerging opportunities. Integrating and expanding biophysical studies across protist diversity, exploiting the unique characteristics of each organism, will enrich our understanding of general underlying principles.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ben T Larson
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Moulia B, Badel E, Bastien R, Duchemin L, Eloy C. The shaping of plant axes and crowns through tropisms and elasticity: an example of morphogenetic plasticity beyond the shoot apical meristem. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2022; 233:2354-2379. [PMID: 34890051 DOI: 10.1111/nph.17913] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2020] [Accepted: 06/17/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Shoot morphogenetic plasticity is crucial to the adaptation of plants to their fluctuating environments. Major insights into shoot morphogenesis have been compiled studying meristems, especially the shoot apical meristem (SAM), through a methodological effort in multiscale systems biology and biophysics. However, morphogenesis at the SAM is robust to environmental changes. Plasticity emerges later on during post-SAM development. The purpose of this review is to show that multiscale systems biology and biophysics is insightful for the shaping of the whole plant as well. More specifically, we review the shaping of axes and crowns through tropisms and elasticity, combining the recent advances in morphogenetic control using physical cues and by genes. We focus mostly on land angiosperms, but with growth habits ranging from small herbs to big trees. We show that generic (universal) morphogenetic processes have been identified, revealing feedforward and feedback effects of global shape on the local morphogenetic process. In parallel, major advances have been made in the analysis of the major genes involved in shaping axes and crowns, revealing conserved genic networks among angiosperms. Then, we show that these two approaches are now starting to converge, revealing exciting perspectives.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Bruno Moulia
- Université Clermont Auvergne, INRAE, PIAF, F-63000, Clermont-Ferrand, France
| | - Eric Badel
- Université Clermont Auvergne, INRAE, PIAF, F-63000, Clermont-Ferrand, France
| | - Renaud Bastien
- Université Clermont Auvergne, INRAE, PIAF, F-63000, Clermont-Ferrand, France
- INSERM U1284, Center for Research and Interdisciplinarity (CRI), Université de Paris, F-75004, Paris, France
| | - Laurent Duchemin
- Physique et Mécanique des Milieux Hétérogenes, CNRS, ESPCI Paris, Université PSL, Sorbonne Université, Université de Paris, F-75005, Paris, France
| | - Christophe Eloy
- Aix Marseille Univ, CNRS, Centrale Marseille, IRPHE, F-13013, Marseille, France
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Niklas KJ, Crepet WL. Morphological (and not anatomical or reproductive) features define early vascular plant phylogenetic relationships. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BOTANY 2020; 107:477-488. [PMID: 32107771 DOI: 10.1002/ajb2.1440] [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: 10/09/2019] [Accepted: 01/08/2020] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
PREMISE Perhaps the most rapid period of vascular plant evolution occurred during the Silurian-Devonian time interval. Yet, few quantitative analyses have established the extent to which anatomical, morphological, or reproductive features contributed to this episode of tracheophyte diversification. METHODS Phylogenetic analyses were performed using a newly revised matrix of 54 characters (with 158 character states) of 37 of the best-preserved Paleozoic (predominantly Devonian) plants. Equisetum was included to determine whether it aligns with fossil sphenopsids or taxa collectively considered "ferns". The topology of the 54-character consensus tree was then compared to the topologies generated using only reproductive features (18 characters; 47 character states), only anatomical features (14 characters; 54 character states), only morphological features (22 characters; 57 character states), and the three pairwise combinations (e.g., anatomical and morphological characters). RESULTS The new 54-character tree topology continued to identify a trimerophyte-euphyllophyte clade and a zosterophyllophyte-lycophyte clade emerging from a Cooksonia-rhyniophyte plexus. Equisetum aligned with fossil sphenopsids rather than fern-like fossil taxa. Reproductive characters or anatomical characters analyzed in isolation resulted in nearly complete polytomy. Among the various permutations of the three categories, anatomical and morphological characters when combined provided the best restoration of the 54-character tree topology. CONCLUSIONS The phylogenetic relationships among the canonical fossil taxa used in this analysis predominantly reflect morphological trends. Reproductive and anatomical features taken in isolation appear to be evolutionarily conservative characters, i.e., natural selection "sees" the external phenotype.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Karl J Niklas
- Plant Biology Section, School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, 14853, USA
| | - William L Crepet
- Plant Biology Section, School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, 14853, USA
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Malerba ME, Marshall DJ. Testing the drivers of the temperature-size covariance using artificial selection. Evolution 2019; 74:169-178. [PMID: 31815291 DOI: 10.1111/evo.13896] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2019] [Revised: 10/29/2019] [Accepted: 11/12/2019] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Body size often declines with increasing temperature. Although there is ample evidence for this effect to be adaptive, it remains unclear whether size shrinking at warmer temperatures is driven by specific properties of being smaller (e.g., surface to volume ratio) or by traits that are correlated with size (e.g., metabolism, growth). We used 290 generations (22 months) of artificial selection on a unicellular phytoplankton species to evolve a 13-fold difference in volume between small-selected and large-selected cells and tested their performance at 22°C (usual temperature), 18°C (-4), and 26°C (+4). Warmer temperatures increased fitness in small-selected individuals and reduced fitness in large-selected ones, indicating changes in size alone are sufficient to mediate temperature-dependent performance. Our results are incompatible with the often-cited geometric argument of warmer temperature intensifying resource limitation. Instead, we find evidence that is consistent with larger cells being more vulnerable to reactive oxygen species. By engineering cells of different sizes, our results suggest that smaller-celled species are pre-adapted for higher temperatures. We discuss the potential repercussions for global carbon cycles and the biological pump under climate warming.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Martino E Malerba
- Centre of Geometric Biology, School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, 3800, Australia
| | - Dustin J Marshall
- Centre of Geometric Biology, School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, 3800, Australia
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Lauri PÉ. Corner's rules as a framework for plant morphology, architecture and functioning - issues and steps forward. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2019; 221:1679-1684. [PMID: 30276821 DOI: 10.1111/nph.15503] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2018] [Accepted: 09/24/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Pierre-Éric Lauri
- SYSTEM, Univ Montpellier, INRA, Cirad, Montpellier SupAgro, CIHEAM-IAMM, 2 Place Pierre Viala, Montpellier, 34060, France
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Zajączkowska U, Kasprzak W, Nałęcz M. Transitions in nutation trajectory geometry in peppermint (Mentha x piperita L.) with respect to lunisolar acceleration. PLANT BIOLOGY (STUTTGART, GERMANY) 2019; 21:133-141. [PMID: 30218478 DOI: 10.1111/plb.12911] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2018] [Accepted: 09/10/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Nutations of plant organs are significantly affected by the circatidal modulation in the gravitational force exerted by the Moon and Sun (lunisolar tidal acceleration, Etide). In a previous study on nutational rotations of stem apices, we observed abrupt alterations in their direction and irregularities of the recorded trajectories. Such transitions have not yet been analysed in detail. Peppermint plants were continuously recorded with time-lapse photography and aligned with contemporaneous time courses of the Etide estimates. Each nutational stem tip movement path was assigned to one of two groups, depending on its geometry, as: (i) regular elliptical movements and (ii) irregular movements (with a random type of trajectory). Analyses of the correlation between the plant nutation trajectory parameters and Etide, as well as of the trajectory geometry of the individual plants were performed. The trajectory geometry of young mint stem apices was related to the velocity of the apex rotation and significantly affected by the gravitational force estimated from the Etide. A low velocity of nutational movement, associated with the random character of the trajectory, usually occurred simultaneously with local minima or maxima of Etide. As the mint plant ages, the transitions in the stem tip trajectory were limited; no correspondence with Etide dynamics was observed. The results indicate that the plant tip geometry path transitions with respect to the changing gradient of lunisolar tidal acceleration could be interpreted as manifestation of a continuous accommodation of the shoot apical part to the state of minimum energy dissipation.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- U Zajączkowska
- Department of Forest Botany, Faculty of Forestry, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
| | - W Kasprzak
- Institute of Control and Computation Engineering, Warsaw University of Technology, Warsaw, Poland
| | - M Nałęcz
- Institute of Electronic Systems, Warsaw University of Technology, Warsaw, Poland
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
The future of the fossil record: Paleontology in the 21st century. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2015; 112:4852-8. [PMID: 25901304 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1505146112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
|
8
|
Kutschera U, Niklas KJ. Darwin-Wallace Demons: survival of the fastest in populations of duckweeds and the evolutionary history of an enigmatic group of angiosperms. PLANT BIOLOGY (STUTTGART, GERMANY) 2015; 17 Suppl 1:24-32. [PMID: 24674028 DOI: 10.1111/plb.12171] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2013] [Accepted: 01/23/2014] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
In evolutionary biology, the term 'Darwinian fitness' refers to the lifetime reproductive success of an individual within a population of conspecifics. The idea of a 'Darwinian Demon' emerged from this concept and is defined here as an organism that commences reproduction almost immediately after birth, has a maximum fitness, and lives forever. It has been argued that duckweeds (sub-family Lemnoideae, order Alismatales), a group containing five genera and 34 species of small aquatic monocotyledonous plants with a reduced body plan, can be interpreted as examples of 'Darwinian Demons'. Here we focus on the species Spirodela polyrhiza (Great duckweed) and show that these miniaturised aquatic angiosperms display features that fit the definition of the hypothetical organism that we will call a 'Darwin-Wallace Demon' in recognition of the duel proponents of evolution by natural selection. A quantitative analysis (log-log bivariate plot of annual growth in dry biomass versus standing dry body mass of various green algae and land plants) revealed that duckweeds are thus far the most rapidly growing angiosperms in proportion to their body mass. In light of this finding, we discuss the disposable soma and metabolic optimising theories, summarise evidence for and against the proposition that the Lemnoideae (family Araceae) reflect an example of reductive evolution, and argue that, under real-world conditions (environmental constraints and other limitations), 'Darwin-Wallace Demons' cannot exist, although the concept remains useful in much the same way that the Hardy-Weinberg law does.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- U Kutschera
- Institute of Biology, University of Kassel, Kassel, Germany
| | | |
Collapse
|
9
|
Rosell JA, Gleason S, Méndez-Alonzo R, Chang Y, Westoby M. Bark functional ecology: evidence for tradeoffs, functional coordination, and environment producing bark diversity. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2014; 201:486-497. [PMID: 24117609 DOI: 10.1111/nph.12541] [Citation(s) in RCA: 79] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2013] [Accepted: 09/04/2013] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
The causes underlying bark diversity are unclear. Variation has been frequently attributed to environmental differences across sites. However, variation may also result from tradeoffs and coordination between bark's multiple functions. Bark traits may also covary with wood and leaf traits as part of major dimensions of plant variation. To assess hypotheses regarding tradeoffs and functional coordination, we measured bark traits reflecting protection, storage, mechanics, and photosynthesis in branches of 90 species spanning a wide phylogenetic and environmental range. We also tested associations between bark, wood, and leaf traits. We partitioned trait variation within species, and within and across communities to quantify variation associated with across-site differences. We observed associations between bark mechanics and storage, density and thickness, and thickness and photosynthetic activity. Increasing bark thickness contributed significantly to stiffer stems and greater water storage. Bark density, water content, and mechanics covaried strongly with the equivalent wood traits, and to a lesser degree with leaf size, xylem conductivity, and vessel diameter. Most variation was observed within sites and had low phylogenetic signal. Compared with relatively minor across-site differences, tradeoffs and coordination among functions of bark, leaves, and wood are likely to be major and overlooked factors shaping bark ecology and evolution.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Julieta A Rosell
- Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, NSW, 2109, Australia
| | - Sean Gleason
- Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, NSW, 2109, Australia
| | - Rodrigo Méndez-Alonzo
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, 621 Charles Young Drive S., Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - Yvonne Chang
- Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, NSW, 2109, Australia
| | - Mark Westoby
- Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, NSW, 2109, Australia
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Moulia B. Plant biomechanics and mechanobiology are convergent paths to flourishing interdisciplinary research. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BOTANY 2013; 64:4617-33. [PMID: 24193603 DOI: 10.1093/jxb/ert320] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/18/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Bruno Moulia
- INRA (Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique), UMR0547 PIAF (Unité Mixte de Recherche PIAF Physique et Physiologie Intégratives de l'Arbre Fruitier et Forestier), F-63100 Clermont-Ferrand, France
| |
Collapse
|