Response to Comment on "Small Bilaterian Fossils from 40 to 55 Million Years Before the Cambrian"

Molecular clocks and the early evolution of metazoan nervous systems

The timing of early animal evolution remains poorly resolved, yet remains critical for understanding nervous system evolution. Methods for estimating divergence times from sequence data have improved considerably, providing a more refined understanding of key divergences. The best molecular estimates point to the origin of metazoans and bilaterians tens to hundreds of millions of years earlier than their first appearances in the fossil record. Both the molecular and fossil records are compatible, however, with the possibility of tiny, unskeletonized, low energy budget animals during the Proterozoic that had planktonic, benthic, or meiofaunal lifestyles. Such animals would likely have had relatively simple nervous systems equipped primarily to detect food, avoid inhospitable environments and locate mates. The appearance of the first macropredators during the Cambrian would have changed the selective landscape dramatically, likely driving the evolution of complex sense organs, sophisticated sensory processing systems, and diverse effector systems involved in capturing prey and avoiding predation.

Critical appraisal of tubular putative eumetazoans from the Ediacaran Weng'an Doushantuo biota

Molecular clock analyses estimate that crown-group animals began diversifying hundreds of millions of years before the start of the Cambrian period. However, the fossil record has not yielded unequivocal evidence for animals during this interval. Some of the most promising candidates for Precambrian animals occur in the Weng'an biota of South China, including a suite of tubular fossils assigned to Sinocyclocyclicus, Ramitubus, Crassitubus and Quadratitubus, that have been interpreted as soft-bodied eumetazoans comparable to tabulate corals. Here, we present new insights into the anatomy, original composition and phylogenetic affinities of these taxa based on data from synchrotron radiation X-ray tomographic microscopy, ptychographic nanotomography, scanning electron microscopy and electron probe microanalysis. The patterns of deformation observed suggest that the cross walls of Sinocyclocyclicus and Quadratitubus were more rigid than those of Ramitubus and Crassitubus. Ramitubus and Crassitubus specimens preserve enigmatic cellular clusters at terminal positions in the tubes. Specimens of Sinocyclocyclicus and Ramitubus have biological features that might be cellular tissue or subcellular structures filling the spaces between the cross walls. These observations are incompatible with a cnidarian interpretation, in which the spaces between cross walls are abandoned parts of the former living positions of the polyp. The affinity of the Weng'an tubular fossils may lie within the algae.

Evolution of centralized nervous systems: two schools of evolutionary thought

Understanding the evolution of centralized nervous systems requires an understanding of metazoan phylogenetic interrelationships, their fossil record, the variation in their cephalic neural characters, and the development of these characters. Each of these topics involves comparative approaches, and both cladistic and phenetic methodologies have been applied. Our understanding of metazoan phylogeny has increased greatly with the cladistic analysis of molecular data, and relaxed molecular clocks generally date the origin of bilaterians at 600-700 Mya (during the Ediacaran). Although the taxonomic affinities of the Ediacaran biota remain uncertain, a conservative interpretation suggests that a number of these taxa form clades that are closely related, if not stem clades of bilaterian crown clades. Analysis of brain-body complexity among extant bilaterians indicates that diffuse nerve nets and possibly, ganglionated cephalic neural systems existed in Ediacaran organisms. An outgroup analysis of cephalic neural characters among extant metazoans also indicates that the last common bilaterian ancestor possessed a diffuse nerve plexus and that brains evolved independently at least four times. In contrast, the hypothesis of a tripartite brain, based primarily on phenetic analysis of developmental genetic data, indicates that the brain arose in the last common bilaterian ancestor. Hopefully, this debate will be resolved by cladistic analysis of the genomes of additional taxa and an increased understanding of character identity genetic networks.

Distinguishing geology from biology in the Ediacaran Doushantuo biota relaxes constraints on the timing of the origin of bilaterians

The Ediacaran Doushantuo biota has yielded fossils that include the oldest widely accepted record of the animal evolutionary lineage, as well as specimens with alleged bilaterian affinity. However, these systematic interpretations are contingent on the presence of key biological structures that have been reinterpreted by some workers as artefacts of diagenetic mineralization. On the basis of chemistry and crystallographic fabric, we characterize and discriminate phases of mineralization that reflect: (i) replication of original biological structure, and (ii) void-filling diagenetic mineralization. The results indicate that all fossils from the Doushantuo assemblage preserve a complex mélange of mineral phases, even where subcellular anatomy appears to be preserved. The findings allow these phases to be distinguished in more controversial fossils, facilitating a critical re-evaluation of the Doushantuo fossil assemblage and its implications as an archive of Ediacaran animal diversity. We find that putative subcellular structures exhibit fabrics consistent with preservation of original morphology. Cells in later developmental stages are not in original configuration and are therefore uninformative concerning gastrulation. Key structures used to identify Doushantuo bilaterians can be dismissed as late diagenetic artefacts. Therefore, when diagenetic mineralization is considered, there is no convincing evidence for bilaterians in the Doushantuo assemblage.

Tiny sea anemone from the Lower Cambrian of China

Background

Abundant fossils from the Ediacaran and Cambrian showing cnidarian grade grossly suggest that cnidarian diversification occurred earlier than that of other eumetazoans. However, fossils of possible soft-bodied polyps are scanty and modern corals are dated back only to the Middle Triassic, although molecular phylogenetic results support the idea that anthozoans represent the first major branch of the Cnidaria. Because of difficulties in taxonomic assignments owing to imperfect preservation of fossil cnidarian candidates, little is known about forms ancestral to those of living groups.

Methods and Findings

We have analyzed the soft-bodied polypoid microfossils Eolympia pediculata gen. et sp. nov. from the lowest Cambrian Kuanchuanpu Formation in southern China by scanning electron microscopy and computer-aided microtomography after isolating fossils from sedimentary rocks by acetic acid maceration. The fossils, about a half mm in body size, are preserved with 18 mesenteries including directives bilaterally arranged, 18 tentacles and a stalk-like pedicle. The pedicle suggests a sexual life cycle, while asexual reproduction by transverse fission also is inferred by circumferential grooves on the body column.

Conclusions

The features found in the present fossils fall within the morphological spectrum of modern Hexacorallia excluding Ceriantharia, and thus Eolympia pediculata could be a stem member for this group. The fossils also demonstrate that basic features characterizing modern hexacorallians such as bilateral symmetry and the reproductive system have deep roots in the Early Cambrian.

How did indirect development with planktotrophic larvae evolve?

The two main types of theories for the evolution of the biphasic life cycles in marine invertebrates are discussed. The "intercalation" theories propose that the larval stages (planktotrophic or lecithotrophic) have evolved as specializations from the ancestral, direct life cycle. The opposing "terminal addition" theories propose that the ancestor was holopelagic and that the adult stage was added to the life cycle with the pelagic stage retained as a planktotrophic larva. It is emphasized that theories based on hypothetical ancestors that were unable to feed must be rejected. This applies to planula theories based on a compact planula. Various arguments against the theories that consider the feeding larvae as ancestral in the major eumetazoan lineages and in particular against the trochaea theory are discussed and found untenable. It is suggested that the "Cambrian explosion" was actually a rapid Ediacaran radiation of the eubilaterians that was made possible by the evolution of a tubular gut with all the resulting possibilities for new body plans.

Distinguishing heat from light in debate over controversial fossils

Fossil organisms offer our only direct insight into how the distinctive body plans of extant organisms were assembled. However, realizing the potential evolutionary significance of fossils can be hampered by controversy over their interpretation. Here, as a guide to evaluating palaeontological debates, we outline the process and pitfalls of fossil interpretation. The physical remains of controversial fossils should be reconstructed before interpreting homologies, and choice of interpretative model should be explicit and justified. Extinct taxa lack characters diagnostic of extant clades because the characters had not yet evolved, because of secondary loss, or because they have rotted away. The latter, if not taken into account, will lead to the spurious assignment of fossils to basally branching clades. Conflicting interpretations of fossils can often be resolved by considering all the steps in the process of anatomical analysis and phylogenetic placement, although we must accept that some fossil organisms are simply too incompletely preserved for their evolutionary significance to be realized.

The earliest fossil record of the animals and its significance

The fossil record of the earliest animals has been enlivened in recent years by a series of spectacular discoveries, including embryos, from the Ediacaran to the Cambrian, but many issues, not least of dating and interpretation, remain controversial. In particular, aspects of taphonomy of the earliest fossils require careful consideration before pronouncements about their affinities. Nevertheless, a reasonable case can now be made for the extension of the fossil record of at least basal animals (sponges and perhaps cnidarians) to a period of time significantly before the beginning of the Cambrian. The Cambrian explosion itself still seems to represent the arrival of the bilaterians, and many new fossils in recent years have added significant data on the origin of the three major bilaterian clades. Why animals appear so late in the fossil record is still unclear, but the recent trend to embrace rising oxygen levels as being the proximate cause remains unproven and may even involve a degree of circularity.

Problematica old and new

Problematica are taxa that defy robust phylogenetic placement. Traditionally the term was restricted to fossil forms, but it is clear that extant taxa may be just as difficult to place, whether using morphological or molecular (nucleotide, gene or genomic) markers for phylogeny reconstruction. We discuss the kinds and causes of Problematica within the Metazoa, as well as criteria for their recognition and possible solutions. The inclusive set of Problematica changes depending upon the nature and quality of (homologous) data available, the methods of phylogeny reconstruction and the sister taxa inferred by their placement or displacement. We address Problematica in the context of pre-cladistic phylogenetics, numerical morphological cladistics and molecular phylogenetics, and focus on general biological and methodological implications of Problematica, rather than presenting a review of individual taxa. Rather than excluding Problematica from phylogeny reconstruction, as has often been preferred, we conclude that the study of Problematica is crucial for both the resolution of metazoan phylogeny and the proper inference of body plan evolution.

Preservation and fluorescence of the microfossils from Neoproterozoic Doushantuo formation

The phosphatized microfossils from Doushantuo Formation, Southeast China show us the biodiversity about 600 million years ago, which is a unique window for the evolution of the early life on earth. However, the process of phosphatic fossilization in detail still remains unknown. Here we report our study on the preservation state of the fossils by using confocal laser scanning microscopy. We found that fluorescent signal of the fossil could reflect the preservation state when compared with the transmission light microscopy. First, we found the fluorescent signal of the decayed cells of the fossil was weaker than that of the nondecayed part. Second, we found that the three-dimensional reconstruction of the fluorescent signals could help to judge the degree of mineralization of the fossil cells, compared with the observation by transmission light microscope. Third, we found that almost all of the fossil specimens we observed could fluoresce more or less when excited by laser light. Therefore, the fluorescent microscopy provides a useful method for the study of the preservation state of the phosphatic fossil cells.

Synchrotron X-ray tomographic microscopy of fossil embryos

Fossilized embryos from the late Neoproterozoic and earliest Phanerozoic have caused much excitement because they preserve the earliest stages of embryology of animals that represent the initial diversification of metazoans. However, the potential of this material has not been fully realized because of reliance on traditional, non-destructive methods that allow analysis of exposed surfaces only, and destructive methods that preserve only a single two-dimensional view of the interior of the specimen. Here, we have applied synchrotron-radiation X-ray tomographic microscopy (SRXTM), obtaining complete three-dimensional recordings at submicrometre resolution. The embryos are preserved by early diagenetic impregnation and encrustation with calcium phosphate, and differences in X-ray attenuation provide information about the distribution of these two diagenetic phases. Three-dimensional visualization of blastomere arrangement and diagenetic cement in cleavage embryos resolves outstanding questions about their nature, including the identity of the columnar blastomeres. The anterior and posterior anatomy of embryos of the bilaterian worm-like Markuelia confirms its position as a scalidophoran, providing new insights into body-plan assembly among constituent phyla. The structure of the developing germ band in another bilaterian, Pseudooides, indicates a unique mode of germ-band development. SRXTM provides a method of non-invasive analysis that rivals the resolution achieved even by destructive methods, probing the very limits of fossilization and providing insight into embryology during the emergence of metazoan phyla.

Phosphatized polar lobe-forming embryos from the Precambrian of southwest China

In developing embryos of some extant spiralian animals, polar lobe formation is one of the symmetry-breaking mechanisms for segregation of maternal cytoplasmic substances to certain blastomeres and not others. Polar lobe formation leads to unique early cleavage morphologies that include trilobed, J-shaped, and five-lobed structures. Fossil embryos similar to modern lobeforming embryos are recognized from the Precambrian Doushantuo Formation phosphates, Weng'an, Guizhou Province, China. These embryos are abundant and form a developmental sequence comparable to different developing stages observed in lobe-forming embryos of extant spiralians. These data imply that lobe formation is an evolutionarily ancient process of embryonic specification.