Contributions of Oxyrrhis marina to molecular biology, genomics and organelle evolution of dinoflagellates

The flagellate Oxyrrhis marina has been the subject of numerous studies addressing diverse aspects of protist biology including feeding, motility, ecology and cell biology. In spite of the rich body of information that has been built around this organism, the molecular biology of O. marina has remained virtually unstudied until very recently. Studying the molecular biology and genomics of O. marina is not only important due to its role as a model organism and practical accessibility; current evidence shows that it occupies a basal position within the dinoflagellate lineage, making it an ideal starting point to reconstruct the evolution of several interesting characters in this diverse group and its sister group Apicomplexa. Among these features, dinoflagellates have very divergent mitochondrial genomes, a complex history of plastid evolution and unique features involving the nuclear genome and transcription. Here we review and discuss how recent findings from O. marina are contributing to shed light on these and other aspects of the evolutionary history of two important eukaryotic lineages, the apicomplexans and dinoflagellates.