Endosymbionts of Siboglinum fiordicum and the phylogeny of bacterial endosymbionts in Siboglinidae (Annelida)

Siboglinid worms are a group of gutless marine annelids that are nutritionally dependent upon endosymbiotic bacteria. Four major groups of siboglinids are known - vestimentiferans, moniliferans, Osedax spp. and frenulates. Although endosymbionts of vestimentiferans and Osedax spp. have been previously characterized, little is currently known about endosymbiotic bacteria associated with frenulate and moniliferan siboglinids. This is particularly surprising given that frenulates are the most diverse and widely distributed group of siboglinids. Here, we molecularly characterize endosymbiotic bacteria associated with the frenulate siboglinid Siboglinum fiordicum by using 16S rDNA ribotyping in concert with laser-capture microdissection (LCM). Phylogenetic analysis indicates that at least three major clades of endosymbiotic γ-proteobacteria associate with siboglinid annelids, with each clade corresponding to a major siboglinid group. S. fiordicum endosymbionts are a group of γ-proteobacteria that are divergent from bacteria associated with vestimentiferan or Osedax hosts. Interestingly, symbionts of S. fiordicum, from Norway, are most closely related to symbionts of the frenulate Oligobrachia mashikoi from Japan, suggesting that symbionts of frenulates may share common evolutionary history or metabolic features

Seasonal occurrence of balanomorph barnacle nauplius larvae in the region of the Antarctic Peninsula

Author Posting. © The Author(s), 2010. This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here by permission of Elsevier B.V. for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 392 (2010): 125-128, doi:10.1016/j.jembe.2010.04.016.Plankton samples taken along the west coast of the Antarctic Peninsula and in Bransfield Strait show widespread occurrence of Bathylasma corolliforme nauplius larvae during the austral spring, mid-October to the third week of December. During autumn, between the first week of May and early June there was a complete absence of balanomorph nauplii. This evidence shows periodicity in reproduction. There is a seemingly close correlation between the presence of these nauplii and the published data on phytoplankton biomass and seawater surface temperature.The research was supported by grants from the U.S. National Science Foundation Office of Polar Programs

Opsin evolution in the Ambulacraria

Opsins - G-protein coupled receptors involved in photoreception - have been extensively studied in the animal kingdom. The present work provides new insights into opsin-based photoreception and photoreceptor cell evolution with a first analysis of opsin sequence data for a major deuterostome clade, the Ambulacraria. Systematic data analysis, including for the first time hemichordate opsin sequences and an expanded echinoderm dataset, led to a robust opsin phylogeny for this cornerstone superphylum. Multiple genomic and transcriptomic resources were surveyed to cover each class of Hemichordata and Echinodermata. In total, 119 ambulacrarian opsin sequences were found, 22 new sequences in hemichordates and 97 in echinoderms (including 67 new sequences). We framed the ambulacrarian opsin repertoire within eumetazoan diversity by including selected reference opsins from non-ambulacrarians. Our findings corroborate the presence of all major ancestral bilaterian opsin groups in Ambulacraria. Furthermore, we identified two opsin groups specific to echinoderms. In conclusion, a molecular phylogenetic framework for investigating light-perception and photobiological behaviors in marine deuterostomes has been obtained

Multi-omics for studying and understanding polar life

Polar ecosystems are experiencing amongst the most rapid rates of regional warming on Earth. Here, we discuss ‘omics’ approaches to investigate polar biodiversity, including the current state of the art, future perspectives and recommendations. We propose a community road map to generate and more fully exploit multi-omics data from polar organisms. These data are needed for the comprehensive evaluation of polar biodiversity and to reveal how life evolved and adapted to permanently cold environments with extreme seasonality. We argue that concerted action is required to mitigate the impact of warming on polar ecosystems via conservation efforts, to sustainably manage these unique habitats and their ecosystem services, and for the sustainable bioprospecting of novel genes and compounds for societal gain

Chaetopterid tubes from vent and seep sites: Implications for fossil record and evolutionary history of vent and seep annelids

Vestimentiferan tube worms living at deep-sea hydrothermal vents and cold seeps have been considered as a clade with a long and continuing evolutionary history in these ecosystems. Whereas the fossil record appears to support this view, molecular age estimates do not. The two main features that are used to identify vestimentiferan tubes in the fossil record are longitudinal ridges on the tube's surface and a tube wall constructed of multiple layers. It is shown here that chaetopterid tubes from modern vents and seeps—as well as a number of fossil tubes from shallow-water environments—also show these two features. This calls for a more cautious interpretation of tubular fossils from ancient vent and seep deposits. We suggest that: current estimates for a relatively young evolutionary age based on molecular clock methods may be more reliable than the inferences of ancient “vestimentiferans” based on putative fossils of these worms; not all of these putative fossils actually belong to this group; and that tubes from fossil seeps should be investigated for chitinous remains to substantiate claims of their potential siboglinid affinities

Mitochondrial genome and nuclear sequence data support Myzostomida as part of the annelid radiation

The echinoderm symbionts Myzostomida are marine worms that show an enigmatic lophotrochozoan body plan. Historically, their phylogenetic origins were obscured due to disagreement about which morphological features are evolutionarily conserved, but now most morphological evidence points to annelid origins. In contrast, recent phylogenetic analyses using different molecular markers produced variable results regarding the position of myzostomids, but all suggested these worms are not derived annelids. To reexamine this issue, we analyzed data from nuclear genes (18S rDNA, 28S rDNA, Myosin II, and Elongation Factor-1α), and a nearly complete myzostomid mitochondrial genome. Here, we show that the molecular data are in agreement with the morphological evidence that myzostomids are part of the annelid radiation. This result is robustly supported by mitochondrial (gene order and sequence data) and nuclear data, as well as by recent ultrastructural investigations. Using Bayes factor comparison, alternative hypotheses are shown to lack support. Thus, myzostomids probably evolved from a segmented ancestor and gained a derived anatomy during their long evolutionary history as echinoderm symbionts. © The Author 2007. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution. All rights reserved.SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Lophotrochozoa internal phylogeny: new insights from an up-to-date analysis of nuclear ribosomal genes

Resolving the relationships among animal phyla is a key biological problem that remains to be solved. Morphology is unable to determine the relationships among most phyla and although molecular data have unveiled a new evolutionary scenario, they have their own limitations. Nuclear ribosomal genes (18S and 28S rDNA) have been used effectively for many years. However, they are considered of limited use for resolving deep divergences such as the origin of the bilaterians, due to certain drawbacks such as the long-branch attraction (LBA) problem. Here, we attempt to overcome these pitfalls by combining several methods suggested in previous studies and routinely used in contemporary standard phylogenetic analyses but that have not yet been applied to any bilaterian phylogeny based on these genes. The methods used include maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference, the application of models with rate heterogeneity across sites, wide taxon sampling and compartmentalized analyses for each problematic clade. The results obtained show that the combination of the above-mentioned methodologies minimizes the LBA effect, and a new Lophotrochozoa phylogeny emerges. Also, the Acoela and Nemertodermatida are confirmed with maximum support as the first branching bilaterians. Ribosomal RNA genes are thus a reliable source for the study of deep divergences in the metazoan tree, provided that the data are treated carefully