A novel gene family controls species-specific morphological traits in Hydra.
Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Khalturin K
PROVIDER: S-EPMC2586386 | biostudies-literature | 2008 Nov
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
Publications
A novel gene family controls species-specific morphological traits in Hydra.
Khalturin Konstantin K Anton-Erxleben Friederike F Sassmann Sylvia S Wittlieb Jörg J Hemmrich Georg G Bosch Thomas C G TC
PLoS biology 20081101 11
Understanding the molecular events that underlie the evolution of morphological diversity is a major challenge in biology. Here, to identify genes whose expression correlates with species-specific morphologies, we compared transcriptomes of two closely related Hydra species. We find that species-specific differences in tentacle formation correlate with expression of a taxonomically restricted gene encoding a small secreted protein. We show that gain of function induces changes in morphology that ...[more]
Similar Datasets
Project description:Recent evidence showing host specificity of colonizing bacteria supports the view that multicellular organisms are holobionts comprised of the macroscopic host in synergistic interdependence with a heterogeneous and host-specific microbial community. Whereas host-bacteria interactions have been extensively investigated, comparatively little is known about host-virus interactions and viral contribution to the holobiont. We sought to determine the viral communities associating with different Hydra species, whether these viral communities were altered with environmental stress, and whether these viruses affect the Hydra-associated holobiont. Here we show that each species of Hydra harbors a diverse host-associated virome. Primary viral families associated with Hydra are Myoviridae, Siphoviridae, Inoviridae, and Herpesviridae. Most Hydra-associated viruses are bacteriophages, a reflection of their involvement in the holobiont. Changes in environmental conditions alter the associated virome, increase viral diversity, and affect the metabolism of the holobiont. The specificity and dynamics of the virome point to potential viral involvement in regulating microbial associations in the Hydra holobiont. While viruses are generally regarded as pathogenic agents, our study suggests an evolutionary conserved ability of viruses to function as holobiont regulators and, therefore, constitutes an emerging paradigm shift in host-microbe interactions.
| S-EPMC4208763 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Epithelia in animals are colonized by complex communities of microbes. Although a topic of long-standing interest, understanding the evolution of the microbial communities and their role in triggering innate immune responses has resisted analysis. Cnidaria are among the simplest animals at the tissue grade of organization. To obtain a better understanding of the microbiota associated with phylogenetically ancient epithelia, we have identified the epibiotic and endosymbiotic bacteria of two species of the cnidarian Hydra on the basis of rRNA comparisons. We analyzed individuals of Hydra oligactis and Hydra vulgaris from both laboratory cultures and the wild. We discovered that individuals from both species differ greatly in their bacterial microbiota. Although H. vulgaris polyps have a quite diverse microbiota, H. oligactis appears to be associated with only a limited number of microbes; some of them were found, unexpectedly, to be endosymbionts. Surprisingly, the microfauna showed similar characteristics in individuals of cultures maintained in the laboratory for >30 years and polyps directly isolated from the wild. The significant differences in the microbial communities between the two species and the maintenance of specific microbial communities over long periods of time strongly indicate distinct selective pressures imposed on and within the epithelium. Our analysis suggests that the Hydra epithelium actively selects and shapes its microbial community.
| S-EPMC1934924 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Recent studies have revitalized interest in methods for detecting evolutionary modes in both fossil sequences and phylogenies. Most of these studies examine single size or shape traits, often implicitly assuming that single phenotypic traits are adequate representations of species-level change. We test the validity of this assumption by tallying the frequency with which traits vary in evolutionary mode within fossil species lineages. After fitting models of directional change, unbiased random walk, and stasis to a dataset of 635 traits across 153 species lineages, we find that within the majority of lineages, evolutionary mode varies across traits and the likelihood of conflicting within-lineage patterns increases with the number of traits analyzed. In addition, single traits may show variation in evolutionary mode even in situations where the overall morphological evolution of the lineage is dominated by one type of mode. These quantified, stratigraphically based findings validate the idea that morphological patterns of mosaic evolution are pervasive across groups of organisms throughout Earth's history.
| S-EPMC3528549 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Shortening rye stems to improve lodging resistance is among the major tasks awaiting breeders of this cereal. The most straightforward way to achieve this goal is the implementation of a dominant dwarfing gene into high yielding cultivars. The choice of dominant dwarfing genes in rye is limited to Ddw1 and Ddw3 loci, which are well characterized with respect to map position and tightly linked molecular markers on the long arms of chromosomes 5RL and 1RL, respectively. This paper reports on the identification and preliminary characterization of a novel dominant dwarfing gene, Ddw4, from line S44. This was mapped within the centromeric region of chromosome 3R. The Ddw4 gene is sensitive to exogenous gibberellin. Its introduction into the rye populational cultivar Da?kowskie Amber decreased plant height by c. 54% without any negative effects on spike length and number of kernels per spike. Further genetic studies are needed to determine the perspectives for application of the newly detected dwarfing gene into breeding programs for short-stem rye.
| S-EPMC6005562 | biostudies-literature
Project description:We developed a statistical model to estimate the abundances of potentially interacting species encountered while conducting point-count surveys at a set of ecologically relevant locations - as in a metacommunity of species. In the model we assume that abundances of species with similar traits (e.g., body size) are potentially correlated and that these correlations, when present, may exist among all species or only among functionally related species (such as members of the same foraging guild). We also assume that species-specific abundances vary among locations owing to systematic and stochastic sources of heterogeneity. For example, if abundances differ among locations due to differences in habitat, then measures of habitat may be included in the model as covariates. Naturally, the quantitative effects of these covariates are assumed to differ among species. Our model also accounts for the effects of detectability on the observed counts of each species. This aspect of the model is especially important for rare or uncommon species that may be difficult to detect in community-level surveys. Estimating the detectability of each species requires sampling locations to be surveyed repeatedly using different observers or different visits of a single observer. As an illustration, we fitted models to species-specific counts of birds obtained while sampling an avian community during the breeding season. In the analysis we examined whether species abundances appeared to be correlated due to similarities in morphological measures (body mass, beak length, tarsus length, wing length, tail length) and whether these correlations existed among all species or only among species of the same foraging guild. We also used the model to estimate the effects of forested area on species abundances and the effects of sound power output (as measured by body size) on species detection probabilities.
| S-EPMC3984154 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The aging process is considered to be the result of accumulating cellular deterioration in an individual organism over time. It can be affected by the combined influence of genetic, epigenetic, and environmental factors including life-style-associated events. In the non-senescent freshwater polyp Hydra, one of the classical model systems for evolutionary developmental biology and regeneration, transcription factor FoxO modulates both stem cell proliferation and innate immunity. This provides strong support for the role of FoxO as a critical rate-of-aging regulator. However, how environmental factors interact with FoxO remains unknown. Here, we find that deficiency in FoxO signaling in Hydra leads to dysregulation of antimicrobial peptide expression and that FoxO loss-of-function polyps are impaired in selection for bacteria resembling the native microbiome and more susceptible to colonization of foreign bacteria. These findings reveal a key role of FoxO signaling in the communication between host and microbiota and embed the evolutionary conserved longevity factor FoxO into the holobiont concept.
| S-EPMC5891625 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Knowledge about the underlying genetic architecture of phenotypic traits is needed to understand and predict evolutionary dynamics. The number of causal loci, magnitude of the effects and location in the genome are, however, still largely unknown. Here, we use genome-wide single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data from two large-scale data sets on house sparrows and collared flycatchers to examine the genetic architecture of different morphological traits (tarsus length, wing length, body mass, bill depth, bill length, total and visible badge size and white wing patches). Genomic heritabilities were estimated using relatedness calculated from SNPs. The proportion of variance captured by the SNPs (SNP-based heritability) was lower in house sparrows compared with collared flycatchers, as expected given marker density (6348 SNPs in house sparrows versus 38?689 SNPs in collared flycatchers). Indeed, after downsampling to similar SNP density and sample size, this estimate was no longer markedly different between species. Chromosome-partitioning analyses demonstrated that the proportion of variance explained by each chromosome was significantly positively related to the chromosome size for some traits and, generally, that larger chromosomes tended to explain proportionally more variation than smaller chromosomes. Finally, we found two genome-wide significant associations with very small-effect sizes. One SNP on chromosome 20 was associated with bill length in house sparrows and explained 1.2% of phenotypic variation (VP), and one SNP on chromosome 4 was associated with tarsus length in collared flycatchers (3% of VP). Although we cannot exclude the possibility of undetected large-effect loci, our results indicate a polygenic basis for morphological traits.
| S-EPMC5555097 | biostudies-literature
Project description:In this work, we present a dataset, which provides information on the structural diversity of some endemic tropical species in Madagascar. The data were from CIRAD xylotheque (since 1937), and were also collected during various fieldworks (since 1964). The field notes and photographs were provided by French botanists; particularly by Francis Hallé. The dataset covers 250 plant species with anatomical, morphological, and architectural traits indexed from digitized wood slides and fieldwork documents. The digitized wood slides were constituted by the transverse, tangential, and radial sections with three optical magnifications. The main specific anatomical traits can be found within the digitized area. Information on morphological and architectural traits were indexed from digitized field drawings including notes and photographs. The data are hosted in the website ArchiWood (http://archiwood.cirad.fr).
| S-EPMC5614721 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Species from Entoloma subg. Entoloma are commonly recorded from both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres and, according to literature, most of them have at least Nearctic-Palearctic distributions. However, these records are based on morphological analysis, and studies relating morphology, molecular data and geographical distribution have not been reported. In this study, we used phylogenetic species recognition criteria through gene genealogical concordance (based on nuclear ITS, LSU, rpb2 and mitochondrial SSU) to answer specific questions considering species limits in Entoloma subg. Entoloma and their geographic distribution in Europe, North America and Australasia. The studied morphotaxa belong to sect. Entoloma, namely species like the notorious poisonous E. sinuatum (E. lividum auct.), E. prunuloides (type-species of sect. Entoloma), E. nitidum and the red-listed E. bloxamii. With a few exceptions, our results reveal strong phylogeographical partitions that were previously not known. For example, no collection from Australasia proved to be conspecific with the Northern Hemisphere specimens. Almost all North American collections represent distinct and sister taxa to the European ones. And even within Europe, new lineages were uncovered for the red-listed E. bloxamii, which were previously unknown due to a broad morphological species concept. Our results clearly demonstrate the power of the phylogenetic species concept to reveal evolutionary units, to redefine the morphological limits of the species addressed and to provide insights into the evolutionary history of key morphological characters for Entoloma systematics. New taxa are described, and new combinations are made, including E. fumosobrunneum, E. pseudoprunuloides, E. ochreoprunuloides and E. caesiolamellatum. Epitypes are selected for E. prunuloides and E. bloxamii. In addition, complete descriptions are given of some other taxa used in this study for which modern descriptions are lacking, viz. E. subsinuatum, E. whiteae, E. flavifolium, E. luridum, E. bloxamii, E. madidum, E. corneri, E. callidermum and E. coeruleoviride.
| S-EPMC3904048 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Gig2 (grass carp reovirus (GCRV)-induced gene 2) is first identified as a novel fish interferon (IFN)-stimulated gene (ISG). Overexpression of a zebrafish Gig2 gene can protect cultured fish cells from virus infection. In the present study, we identify a novel gene family that is comprised of genes homologous to the previously characterized Gig2. EST/GSS search and in silico cloning identify 190 Gig2 homologous genes in 51 vertebrate species ranged from lampreys to amphibians. Further large-scale search of vertebrate and invertebrate genome databases indicate that Gig2 gene family is specific to non-amniotes including lampreys, sharks/rays, ray-finned fishes and amphibians. Phylogenetic analysis and synteny analysis reveal lineage-specific expansion of Gig2 gene family and also provide valuable evidence for the fish-specific genome duplication (FSGD) hypothesis. Although Gig2 family proteins exhibit no significant sequence similarity to any known proteins, a typical Gig2 protein appears to consist of two conserved parts: an N-terminus that bears very low homology to the catalytic domains of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerases (PARPs), and a novel C-terminal domain that is unique to this gene family. Expression profiling of zebrafish Gig2 family genes shows that some duplicate pairs have diverged in function via acquisition of novel spatial and/or temporal expression under stresses. The specificity of this gene family to non-amniotes might contribute to a large extent to distinct physiology in non-amniote vertebrates.
| S-EPMC3617106 | biostudies-literature