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Dan ME, Portner EJ, Bowman JS, Semmens BX, Owens SM, Greenwald SM, Choy CA. Using low volume eDNA methods to sample pelagic marine animal assemblages. PLoS One 2024; 19:e0303263. [PMID: 38748719 PMCID: PMC11095688 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0303263] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2024] [Accepted: 04/23/2024] [Indexed: 05/19/2024] Open
Abstract
Environmental DNA (eDNA) is an increasingly useful method for detecting pelagic animals in the ocean but typically requires large water volumes to sample diverse assemblages. Ship-based pelagic sampling programs that could implement eDNA methods generally have restrictive water budgets. Studies that quantify how eDNA methods perform on low water volumes in the ocean are limited, especially in deep-sea habitats with low animal biomass and poorly described species assemblages. Using 12S rRNA and COI gene primers, we quantified assemblages comprised of micronekton, coastal forage fishes, and zooplankton from low volume eDNA seawater samples (n = 436, 380-1800 mL) collected at depths of 0-2200 m in the southern California Current. We compared diversity in eDNA samples to concurrently collected pelagic trawl samples (n = 27), detecting a higher diversity of vertebrate and invertebrate groups in the eDNA samples. Differences in assemblage composition could be explained by variability in size-selectivity among methods and DNA primer suitability across taxonomic groups. The number of reads and amplicon sequences variants (ASVs) did not vary substantially among shallow (<200 m) and deep samples (>600 m), but the proportion of invertebrate ASVs that could be assigned a species-level identification decreased with sampling depth. Using hierarchical clustering, we resolved horizontal and vertical variability in marine animal assemblages from samples characterized by a relatively low diversity of ecologically important species. Low volume eDNA samples will quantify greater taxonomic diversity as reference libraries, especially for deep-dwelling invertebrate species, continue to expand.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michelle E. Dan
- Integrative Oceanography Division, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America
| | - Elan J. Portner
- Integrative Oceanography Division, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America
| | - Jeff S. Bowman
- Integrative Oceanography Division, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America
| | - Brice X. Semmens
- Marine Biology Research Division, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America
| | - Sarah M. Owens
- Biosciences Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Stephanie M. Greenwald
- Biosciences Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, Illinois, United States of America
| | - C. Anela Choy
- Integrative Oceanography Division, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America
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2
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Breton S. Comparative mitogenomics of Brachiopods reveals conservatism in articulate species and unusualness in inarticulate species. Mol Biol Rep 2024; 51:298. [PMID: 38341808 DOI: 10.1007/s11033-024-09270-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2023] [Accepted: 01/18/2024] [Indexed: 02/13/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Brachiopods are a phylum of marine invertebrates with over 10,000 fossil species. Today, there are fewer than 500 extant species assigned to the class Articulata or Inarticulata and for which knowledge of evolutionary genetics and genomics is still poor. Until now, complete mitogenome sequences of two inarticulate species and four articulate species were available. METHODS AND RESULTS The complete mitogenome of the inarticulate brachiopod species Lingula reevii (20,778 bp) was obtained by using next generation sequencing. It contains 12 protein-coding genes (the annotation of atp8 is unsure), two ribosomal RNA genes, 26 transfer RNA genes, and one supernumerary ORF that is also conserved in the inarticulate species Lingula anatina. It is hypothesized that this ORF could represent a Lingula-specific mtORFan gene (without obvious homology to other genes). Comparative mitogenomics indicate the mitochondrial gene order of L. reevii is unique among brachiopods, and that compared to articulate species, inarticulate species exhibit massive mitogenome rearrangements, deviant ATP8 protein sequences and supernumerary ORFs, possibly representing species- or lineage-specific mtORFan genes. CONCLUSION The results of this study enrich genetics knowledge of extant brachiopods, which may eventually help to test hypotheses about their decline.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sophie Breton
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Montreal, Montreal, Canada.
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3
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Abstract
Ctenophores are the descendants of the earliest surviving lineage of ancestral metazoans, predating the branch leading to sponges (Ctenophore-first phylogeny). Emerging genomic, ultrastructural, cellular, and systemic data indicate that virtually every aspect of ctenophore biology as well as ctenophore development are remarkably different from what is described in representatives of other 32 animal phyla. The outcome of this reconstruction is that most system-level components associated with the ctenophore organization result from convergent evolution. In other words, the ctenophore lineage independently evolved as high animal complexities with the astonishing diversity of cell types and structures as bilaterians and cnidarians. Specifically, neurons, synapses, muscles, mesoderm, through gut, sensory, and integrative systems evolved independently in Ctenophora. Rapid parallel evolution of complex traits is associated with a broad spectrum of unique ctenophore-specific molecular innovations, including alternative toolkits for making an animal. However, the systematic studies of ctenophores are in their infancy, and deciphering their remarkable morphological and functional diversity is one of the hot topics in biological research, with many anticipated surprises.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leonid L Moroz
- Department of Neuroscience, McKnight Brain Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA.
- Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience, University of Florida, St. Augustine, FL, USA.
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4
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Selifanova M, Demianchenko O, Noskova E, Pitikov E, Skvortsov D, Drozd J, Vatolkina N, Apel P, Kolodyazhnaya E, Ezhova MA, Tzetlin AB, Neretina TV, Knorre DA. ORFans in Mitochondrial Genomes of Marine Polychaete Polydora. Genome Biol Evol 2023; 15:evad219. [PMID: 38019573 PMCID: PMC10721130 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evad219] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2023] [Revised: 11/18/2023] [Accepted: 11/24/2023] [Indexed: 11/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Most characterized metazoan mitochondrial genomes are compact and encode a small set of proteins that are essential for oxidative phosphorylation, as well as rRNA and tRNA for their expression. However, in rare cases, invertebrate taxa have additional open reading frames (ORFs) in their mtDNA sequences. Here, we sequenced and analyzed the mitochondrial genome of a polychaete worm, Polydora cf. ciliata, part of whose life cycle takes place in low-oxygen conditions. In the mitogenome, we found three "ORFan" regions (544, 1,060, and 427 bp) that have no resemblance to any standard metazoan mtDNA gene but lack stop codons in one of the reading frames. Similar regions are found in the mitochondrial genomes of three other Polydora species and Bocardiella hamata. All five species share the same gene order in their mitogenomes, which differ from that of other known Spionidae mitogenomes. By analyzing the ORFan sequences, we found that they are under purifying selection pressure and contain conservative regions. The codon adaptation indices (CAIs) of the ORFan genes were in the same range of values as the CAI of conventional protein-coding genes in corresponding mitochondrial genomes. The analysis of the P. cf. ciliata mitochondrial transcriptome showed that ORFan-544, ORFan-427, and a portion of the ORFan-1060 are transcribed. Together, this suggests that ORFan-544 and ORFan-427 encode functional proteins. It is likely that the ORFans originated when the Polydora/Bocardiella species complex separated from the rest of the Spionidae, and this event coincided with massive gene rearrangements in their mitochondrial genomes and tRNA-Met duplication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Selifanova
- Faculty of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
| | - Oleg Demianchenko
- Faculty of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
| | - Elizaveta Noskova
- Faculty of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
| | - Egor Pitikov
- Faculty of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
| | - Denis Skvortsov
- Faculty of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
| | - Jana Drozd
- Faculty of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
| | - Nika Vatolkina
- Faculty of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
| | - Polina Apel
- Faculty of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
| | - Ekaterina Kolodyazhnaya
- Faculty of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
| | - Margarita A Ezhova
- Pertsov White Sea Biological Station, Faculty of Biology, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
- Center of Life Sciences, Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology, Moscow, Russia
| | - Alexander B Tzetlin
- Pertsov White Sea Biological Station, Faculty of Biology, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
| | - Tatiana V Neretina
- Faculty of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
- Pertsov White Sea Biological Station, Faculty of Biology, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
- Institute for Information Transmission Problems (Kharkevich Institute), Russian Academy of Science, Moscow, Russia
| | - Dmitry A Knorre
- Pertsov White Sea Biological Station, Faculty of Biology, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
- Belozersky Institute of Physico-Chemical Biology, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
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5
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Bhatti JS, Khullar N, Vijayvergiya R, Navik U, Bhatti GK, Reddy PH. Mitochondrial miRNA as epigenomic signatures: Visualizing aging-associated heart diseases through a new lens. Ageing Res Rev 2023; 86:101882. [PMID: 36780957 DOI: 10.1016/j.arr.2023.101882] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2021] [Revised: 02/05/2023] [Accepted: 02/08/2023] [Indexed: 02/13/2023]
Abstract
Aging bears many hard knocks, but heart disorders earn a particular allusion, being the most widespread. Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are becoming the biggest concern to mankind due to sundry health conditions directly or indirectly related to heart-linked abnormalities. Scientists know that mitochondria play a critical role in the pathophysiology of cardiac diseases. Both environment and genetics play an essential role in modulating and controlling mitochondrial functions. Even a minor abnormality may prove detrimental to heart function. Advanced age combined with an unhealthy lifestyle can cause most cardiomyocytes to be replaced by fibrotic tissue which upsets the conducting system and leads to arrhythmias. An aging heart encounters far more heart-associated comorbidities than a young heart. Many state-of-the-art technologies and procedures are already being used to prevent and treat heart attacks worldwide. However, it remains a mystery when this heart bomb would explode because it lacks an alarm. This calls for a novel and effective strategy for timely diagnosis and a sure-fire treatment. This review article provides a comprehensive overture of prospective potentials of mitochondrial miRNAs that predict complicated and interconnected pathways concerning heart ailments and signature compilations of relevant miRNAs as biomarkers to plot the role of miRNAs in epigenomics. This article suggests that analysis of DNA methylation patterns in age-associated heart diseases may determine age-impelled biomarkers of heart disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jasvinder Singh Bhatti
- Laboratory of Translational Medicine and Nanotherapeutics, Department of Human Genetics and Molecular Medicine, School of Health Sciences, Central University of Punjab, Bathinda, India.
| | - Naina Khullar
- Department of Zoology, Mata Gujri College, Fatehgarh Sahib, Punjab, India.
| | - Rajesh Vijayvergiya
- Department of Cardiology, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, India.
| | - Umashanker Navik
- Department of Pharmacology, Central University of Punjab, Bathinda, India.
| | - Gurjit Kaur Bhatti
- Department of Medical Lab Technology, University Institute of Applied Health Sciences, Chandigarh University, Mohali, India.
| | - P Hemachandra Reddy
- Department of Internal Medicine, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX, USA; Neuroscience & Pharmacology, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX, USA; Departments of Neurology, School of Medicine, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX, USA; Public Health Department of Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX, USA; Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences, School Health Professions, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX, USA; Nutritional Sciences Department, College of Human Sciences, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX 79409, USA.
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6
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Mifsud JCO, Costa VA, Petrone ME, Marzinelli EM, Holmes EC, Harvey E. Transcriptome mining extends the host range of the Flaviviridae to non-bilaterians. Virus Evol 2022; 9:veac124. [PMID: 36694816 PMCID: PMC9854234 DOI: 10.1093/ve/veac124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2022] [Revised: 12/20/2022] [Accepted: 12/26/2022] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
The flavivirids (family Flaviviridae) are a group of positive-sense RNA viruses that include well-documented agents of human disease. Despite their importance and ubiquity, the timescale of flavivirid evolution is uncertain. An ancient origin, spanning millions of years, is supported by their presence in both vertebrates and invertebrates and by the identification of a flavivirus-derived endogenous viral element in the peach blossom jellyfish genome (Craspedacusta sowerbii, phylum Cnidaria), implying that the flaviviruses arose early in the evolution of the Metazoa. To date, however, no exogenous flavivirid sequences have been identified in these hosts. To help resolve the antiquity of the Flaviviridae, we mined publicly available transcriptome data across the Metazoa. From this, we expanded the diversity within the family through the identification of 32 novel viral sequences and extended the host range of the pestiviruses to include amphibians, reptiles, and ray-finned fish. Through co-phylogenetic analysis we found cross-species transmission to be the predominate macroevolutionary event across the non-vectored flavivirid genera (median, 68 per cent), including a cross-species transmission event between bats and rodents, although long-term virus-host co-divergence was still a regular occurrence (median, 23 per cent). Notably, we discovered flavivirus-like sequences in basal metazoan species, including the first associated with Cnidaria. This sequence formed a basal lineage to the genus Flavivirus and was closer to arthropod and crustacean flaviviruses than those in the tamanavirus group, which includes a variety of invertebrate and vertebrate viruses. Combined, these data attest to an ancient origin of the flaviviruses, likely close to the emergence of the metazoans 750-800 million years ago.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Vincenzo A Costa
- Sydney Institute for Infectious Diseases, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney NSW 2006, Australia
| | - Mary E Petrone
- Sydney Institute for Infectious Diseases, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney NSW 2006, Australia
| | - Ezequiel M Marzinelli
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney NSW 2006, Australia,Sydney Institute of Marine Science, 19 Chowder Bay Rd, Mosman, NSW 2088, Australia,Singapore Centre for Environmental Life Sciences Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 637551 Singapore
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7
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Johnson SB, Winnikoff JR, Schultz DT, Christianson LM, Patry WL, Mills CE, Haddock SHD. Speciation of pelagic zooplankton: Invisible boundaries can drive isolation of oceanic ctenophores. Front Genet 2022; 13:970314. [PMID: 36276958 PMCID: PMC9585324 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2022.970314] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2022] [Accepted: 09/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The study of evolution and speciation in non-model systems provides us with an opportunity to expand our understanding of biodiversity in nature. Connectivity studies generally focus on species with obvious boundaries to gene flow, but in open-ocean environments, such boundaries are difficult to identify. Due to the lack of obvious boundaries, speciation and population subdivision in the pelagic environment remain largely unexplained. Comb jellies (Phylum Ctenophora) are mostly planktonic gelatinous invertebrates, many of which are considered to have freely interbreeding distributions worldwide. It is thought that the lobate ctenophore Bolinopsis infundibulum is distributed throughout cooler northern latitudes and B. vitrea warmer. Here, we examined the global population structure for species of Bolinopsis with genetic and morphological data. We found distinct evolutionary patterns within the genus, where B. infundibulum had a broad distribution from northern Pacific to Atlantic waters despite many physical barriers, while other species were geographically segregated despite few barriers. Divergent patterns of speciation within the genus suggest that oceanic currents, sea-level, and geological changes over time can act as either barriers or aids to dispersal in the pelagic environment. Further, we used population genomic data to examine evolution in the open ocean of a distinct lineage of Bolinopsis ctenophores from the North Eastern Pacific. Genetic information and morphological observations validated this as a separate species, Bolinopsis microptera, which was previously described but has recently been called B. infundibulum. We found that populations of B. microptera from California were in cytonuclear discordance, which indicates a secondary contact zone for previously isolated populations. Discordance at this scale is rare, especially in a continuous setting.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shannon B. Johnson
- Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, Moss Landing, CA, United States
- *Correspondence: Shannon B. Johnson, ; Steven H. D. Haddock,
| | - Jacob R. Winnikoff
- Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, Moss Landing, CA, United States
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, United States
| | - Darrin T. Schultz
- Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, Moss Landing, CA, United States
- Department of Neurosciences and Developmental Biology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Department of Biomolecular Engineering and Bioinformatics, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, United States
| | | | - Wyatt L. Patry
- Animal Care Division, Monterey Bay Aquarium, Monterey, CA, United States
| | - Claudia E. Mills
- Friday Harbor Laboratories and the Department of Biology, University of Washington, Friday Harbor, WA, United States
| | - Steven H. D. Haddock
- Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, Moss Landing, CA, United States
- *Correspondence: Shannon B. Johnson, ; Steven H. D. Haddock,
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8
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Skorupski J. Characterisation of the Complete Mitochondrial Genome of Critically Endangered Mustela lutreola (Carnivora: Mustelidae) and Its Phylogenetic and Conservation Implications. Genes (Basel) 2022; 13:genes13010125. [PMID: 35052465 PMCID: PMC8774856 DOI: 10.3390/genes13010125] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2021] [Revised: 12/28/2021] [Accepted: 01/06/2022] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
In this paper, a complete mitochondrial genome of the critically endangered European mink Mustela lutreola L., 1761 is reported. The mitogenome was 16,504 bp in length and encoded the typical 13 protein-coding genes, two ribosomal RNA genes and 22 transfer RNA genes, and harboured a putative control region. The A+T content of the entire genome was 60.06% (A > T > C > G), and the AT-skew and GC-skew were 0.093 and −0.308, respectively. The encoding-strand identity of genes and their order were consistent with a collinear gene order characteristic for vertebrate mitogenomes. The start codons of all protein-coding genes were the typical ATN. In eight cases, they were ended by complete stop codons, while five had incomplete termination codons (TA or T). All tRNAs had a typical cloverleaf secondary structure, except tRNASer(AGC) and tRNALys, which lacked the DHU stem and had reduced DHU loop, respectively. Both rRNAs were capable of folding into complex secondary structures, containing unmatched base pairs. Eighty-one single nucleotide variants (substitutions and indels) were identified. Comparative interspecies analyses confirmed the close phylogenetic relationship of the European mink to the so-called ferret group, clustering the European polecat, the steppe polecat and the black-footed ferret. The obtained results are expected to provide useful molecular data, informing and supporting effective conservation measures to save M. lutreola.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jakub Skorupski
- Institute of Marine and Environmental Sciences, University of Szczecin, Adama Mickiewicza 16 St., 70-383 Szczecin, Poland; ; Tel.: +48-91-444-16-85
- Polish Society for Conservation Genetics LUTREOLA, Maciejkowa 21 St., 71-784 Szczecin, Poland
- The European Mink Centre, 71-415 Szczecin, Poland
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9
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Romanova EV, Bukin YS, Mikhailov KV, Logacheva MD, Aleoshin VV, Sherbakov DY. The Mitochondrial Genome of a Freshwater Pelagic Amphipod Macrohectopus branickii Is among the Longest in Metazoa. Genes (Basel) 2021; 12:2030. [PMID: 34946978 DOI: 10.3390/genes12122030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2021] [Revised: 11/30/2021] [Accepted: 12/06/2021] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
There are more than 350 species of amphipods (Crustacea) in Lake Baikal, which have emerged predominantly through the course of endemic radiation. This group represents a remarkable model for studying various aspects of evolution, one of which is the evolution of mitochondrial (mt) genome architectures. We sequenced and assembled the mt genome of a pelagic Baikalian amphipod species Macrohectopus branickii. The mt genome is revealed to have an extraordinary length (42,256 bp), deviating significantly from the genomes of other amphipod species and the majority of animals. The mt genome of M. branickii has a unique gene order within amphipods, duplications of the four tRNA genes and Cox2, and a long non-coding region, that makes up about two thirds of the genome’s size. The extension of the mt genome was most likely caused by multiple duplications and inversions of regions harboring ribosomal RNA genes. In this study, we analyzed the patterns of mt genome length changes in amphipods and other animal phyla. Through a statistical analysis, we demonstrated that the variability in the mt genome length may be a characteristic of certain phyla and is primarily conferred by expansions of non-coding regions.
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10
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Schierwater B, Osigus HJ, Bergmann T, Blackstone NW, Hadrys H, Hauslage J, Humbert PO, Kamm K, Kvansakul M, Wysocki K, DeSalle R. The enigmatic Placozoa part 2: Exploring evolutionary controversies and promising questions on earth and in space. Bioessays 2021; 43:e2100083. [PMID: 34490659 DOI: 10.1002/bies.202100083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2021] [Revised: 07/21/2021] [Accepted: 08/16/2021] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
The placozoan Trichoplax adhaerens has been bridging gaps between research disciplines like no other animal. As outlined in part 1, placozoans have been subject of hot evolutionary debates and placozoans have challenged some fundamental evolutionary concepts. Here in part 2 we discuss the exceptional genetics of the phylum Placozoa and point out some challenging model system applications for the best known species, Trichoplax adhaerens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bernd Schierwater
- Institute of Animal Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Foundation, Hannover, Germany
| | - Hans-Jürgen Osigus
- Institute of Animal Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Foundation, Hannover, Germany
| | - Tjard Bergmann
- Institute of Animal Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Foundation, Hannover, Germany
| | - Neil W Blackstone
- Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, Illinois, USA
| | - Heike Hadrys
- Institute of Animal Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Foundation, Hannover, Germany
| | - Jens Hauslage
- Gravitational Biology, Institute of Aerospace Medicine, German Aerospace Center (DLR), Cologne, Germany
| | - Patrick O Humbert
- Department of Biochemistry & Genetics, La Trobe Institute for Molecular Science, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.,Research Centre for Molecular Cancer Prevention, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Kai Kamm
- Institute of Animal Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Foundation, Hannover, Germany
| | - Marc Kvansakul
- Department of Biochemistry & Genetics, La Trobe Institute for Molecular Science, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.,Research Centre for Molecular Cancer Prevention, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Kathrin Wysocki
- Institute of Animal Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Foundation, Hannover, Germany
| | - Rob DeSalle
- American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York, USA
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Shiganova TA, Abyzova GA. Revision of Beroidae (Ctenophora) in the southern seas of Europe: systematics and distribution based on genetics and morphology. Zool J Linn Soc 2021. [DOI: 10.1093/zoolinnean/zlab021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Genetic and morphological analyses were used to revise historical controversies in identities of Beroe species in the southern seas of Europe. DNA analyses with ITS sequences were used to explore their phylogenetic relationships. Three species of Beroe were initially listed as occurring in the Mediterranean Sea. Recently, the specimens were often re-identified using genetic analyses, causing confusions of identity. In 1997, a non-native Beroe was introduced into the Black Sea, which established there and spread to the adjacent seas, adding more controversy and confusion to species identification in this group of comb jellies.
Our revisions suggest the following systematic changes: (1) re-naming of the species from what was initially labelled as Beroe ovata, and later as B. cucumis (sensuMayer, 1912), to Beroe pseudocucumis sp. nov.. (2) Beroe mitrata but not Beroe ‘anatoliensis’ inhabits the Aegean Sea, as was reported previously. (3) Beroe ovata is the only species of Beroidae that became invasive and should be used with the authority of Bruguière, 1789, but not in the sense of Mayer, 1912. (4) Beroe forskalii appears to be represented by two species in the Mediterranean and in the Antarctic, but further justification is needed. (5) Beroe cucumis is a species of bipolar occurrence, inhabiting both subpolar areas and its recent definition as Beroe ‘norvegica’ is incorrect.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tamara A Shiganova
- Shirshov Institute of Oceanology Russian Academy of Sciences, Nakhimovskyi pr., 36, Moscow, Russia
| | - Galina A Abyzova
- Shirshov Institute of Oceanology Russian Academy of Sciences, Nakhimovskyi pr., 36, Moscow, Russia
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12
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Formaggioni A, Luchetti A, Plazzi F. Mitochondrial Genomic Landscape: A Portrait of the Mitochondrial Genome 40 Years after the First Complete Sequence. Life (Basel) 2021; 11:663. [PMID: 34357035 DOI: 10.3390/life11070663] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2021] [Revised: 07/02/2021] [Accepted: 07/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Notwithstanding the initial claims of general conservation, mitochondrial genomes are a largely heterogeneous set of organellar chromosomes which displays a bewildering diversity in terms of structure, architecture, gene content, and functionality. The mitochondrial genome is typically described as a single chromosome, yet many examples of multipartite genomes have been found (for example, among sponges and diplonemeans); the mitochondrial genome is typically depicted as circular, yet many linear genomes are known (for example, among jellyfish, alveolates, and apicomplexans); the chromosome is normally said to be “small”, yet there is a huge variation between the smallest and the largest known genomes (found, for example, in ctenophores and vascular plants, respectively); even the gene content is highly unconserved, ranging from the 13 oxidative phosphorylation-related enzymatic subunits encoded by animal mitochondria to the wider set of mitochondrial genes found in jakobids. In the present paper, we compile and describe a large database of 27,873 mitochondrial genomes currently available in GenBank, encompassing the whole eukaryotic domain. We discuss the major features of mitochondrial molecular diversity, with special reference to nucleotide composition and compositional biases; moreover, the database is made publicly available for future analyses on the MoZoo Lab GitHub page.
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Christianson LM, Johnson SB, Schultz DT, Haddock SHD. Hidden diversity of Ctenophora revealed by new mitochondrial COI primers and sequences. Mol Ecol Resour 2021; 22:283-294. [PMID: 34224654 PMCID: PMC9290464 DOI: 10.1111/1755-0998.13459] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2021] [Revised: 06/22/2021] [Accepted: 06/28/2021] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
The mitochondrial gene cytochrome‐c‐oxidase subunit 1 (COI) is useful in many taxa for phylogenetics, population genetics, metabarcoding, and rapid species identifications. However, the phylum Ctenophora (comb jellies) has historically been difficult to study due to divergent mitochondrial sequences and the corresponding inability to amplify COI with degenerate and standard COI “barcoding” primers. As a result, there are very few COI sequences available for ctenophores, despite over 200 described species in the phylum. Here, we designed new primers and amplified the COI fragment from members of all major groups of ctenophores, including many undescribed species. Phylogenetic analyses of the resulting COI sequences revealed high diversity within many groups that was not evident from more conserved 18S rDNA sequences, in particular among the Lobata (Ctenophora; Tentaculata; Lobata). The COI phylogenetic results also revealed unexpected community structure within the genus Bolinopsis, suggested new species within the genus Bathocyroe, and supported the ecological and morphological differences of some species such as Lampocteis cruentiventer and similar undescribed lobates (Lampocteis sp. “V” stratified by depth, and “A” differentiated by colour). The newly designed primers reported herein provide important tools to enable researchers to illuminate the diversity of ctenophores worldwide via quick molecular identifications, improve the ability to analyse environmental DNA by improving reference libraries and amplifications, and enable a new breadth of population genetic studies.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Darrin T Schultz
- Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, Moss Landing, CA, USA.,Department of Biomolecular Engineering and Bioinformatics, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
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Plazzi F, Puccio G, Passamonti M. HERMES: An improved method to test mitochondrial genome molecular synapomorphies among clades. Mitochondrion 2021; 58:285-295. [PMID: 33639269 DOI: 10.1016/j.mito.2021.02.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2020] [Revised: 01/10/2021] [Accepted: 02/12/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Mitochondrial chromosomes have diversified among eukaryotes and many different architectures and features are now acknowledged for this genome. Here we present the improved HERMES index, which can measure and quantify the amount of molecular change experienced by mitochondrial genomes. We test the improved approach with ten molecular phylogenetic studies based on complete mitochondrial genomes, representing six bilaterian Phyla. In most cases, HERMES analysis spotted out clades or single species with peculiar molecular synapomorphies, allowing to identify phylogenetic and ecological patterns. The software presented herein handles linear, circular, and multi-chromosome genomes, thus widening the HERMES scope to the complete eukaryotic domain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Federico Plazzi
- Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, University of Bologna, via Selmi, 3, 40126 Bologna, Italy.
| | - Guglielmo Puccio
- Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, University of Bologna, via Selmi, 3, 40126 Bologna, Italy.
| | - Marco Passamonti
- Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, University of Bologna, via Selmi, 3, 40126 Bologna, Italy.
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