Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Steven Kelly
Summary: The difference in per-cell copy number of organellar and nuclear genomes provides an energetic incentive for cells to either delete organellar genes or transfer them to the nuclear genome. The majority of transferred organellar genes show that the energy saved by nuclear transfer exceeds the costs incurred from importing the protein into the organelle. The net energy saved by endosymbiotic gene transfer can constitute a significant proportion of total cellular energy budgets, providing a selectable advantage to the cell.
Article
Biology
Jong Im Kim, Goro Tanifuji, Minseok Jeong, Woongghi Shin, John M. Archibald
Summary: In this study, we performed a comparative analysis of nucleomorph genomes in cryptophytes, revealing fine-scale genome variation between photosynthetic and non-photosynthetic species. Additionally, the loss of photosynthesis may have implications for nucleomorph genome coding capacity and structure.
Review
Biology
Parth K. Raval, Sriram G. Garg, Sven B. Gould
Summary: The dichotomy between prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells is significant. The transition from prokaryotes to eukaryotes is not well understood, and the role of endosymbiotic organelles in this process has been questioned. Recent findings on asgard archaea have sparked discussions on the complexity of the common ancestor of eukaryotes. This review explores different models that propose either isolated events in asgard archaeal evolution or the role of endosymbiosis in the development of eukaryotic traits.
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Christoph G. Gaebelein, Michael A. Reiter, Chantal Ernst, Gabriel H. Giger, Julia A. Vorholt
Summary: Researchers tested the potential of artificial endosymbiosis in mammalian cells, and found that the growth rate of E. coli within the cell can be slowed down by limiting the uptake of aromatic amino acids, prolonging the survival of the endosymbiont-host pair.
ACS SYNTHETIC BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Christoph G. Gaebelein, Michael A. Reiter, Chantal Ernst, Gabriel H. Giger, Julia A. Vorholt
Summary: Studying endosymbiosis is crucial for understanding cellular evolution and engineering. By injecting different bacteria into mammalian cells, we tested their potential for endosymbiosis and found that limiting the uptake of specific nutrients can slow down the intracellular growth of the endosymbiont.
ACS SYNTHETIC BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Cell Biology
Shunnosuke Mori, Nobuko Sumiya, Sachihiro Matsunaga
Summary: Research on nucleomorphs provides insights into their role as products of secondary endosymbiosis and the mechanisms of genome reduction and gene transfer. New biological techniques and synthetic biology approaches offer a comprehensive platform to study the characteristics and regulatory mechanisms of nucleomorphs.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
F. de Jesus Mares-Rodriguez, Elva Teresa Arechiga-Carvajal, T. Jose Ruiz-Herrera, Martha Rocio Moreno-Jimenez, Silvia Marina Gonzalez-Herrera, Claudia Geraldine Leon-Ramirez, Alfredo de Jesus Martinez-Roldan, Olga Miriam Rutiaga-Quinones
Summary: Agave is of cultural and economic significance in Mexico due to its use in producing fermented drinks. The microbiome of agave, consisting of fungi and bacteria, plays a crucial role in nutrient acquisition and plant growth under extreme conditions. This study examines the behavior of K. marxianus in extreme nitrogen concentrations and reports a new biological relationship between K. marxianus ITD0090 and Bacillus tequilensis ITD-UANL-01, where the latter acts as a nitrogen-fixing bacterium. This research reveals the importance of microbial interactions in agave fermentation and highlights the first report of an endosymbiont in K. marxianus during fermentation.
PROCESS BIOCHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Anna Karnkowska, Naoji Yubuki, Moe Maruyama, Aika Yamaguchi, Yuichiro Kashiyama, Toshinobu Suzaki, Patrick J. Keeling, Vladimir Hampl, Brian S. Leander
Summary: The green euglenozoan R. viridis has actively functioning kleptoplasts that can produce polysaccharides through photosynthesis. Genes encoding putative plastid proteins from various algae, other than the kleptoplast source, were also found in the genome of R. viridis, indicating a long history of horizontal gene transfer. These findings provide evidence for the early evolutionary stages of euglenophyte green secondary plastids involving kleptoplasty.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Victoria Calatrava, Timothy G. Stephens, Arwa Gabr, Devaki Bhaya, Debashish Bhattacharya, Arthur R. Grossman
Summary: The evolution of eukaryotic life relied on the development of organelles and the mutual dependence of host cells and engulfed prokaryotes. This process required horizontally transferred genes to become active and regulated. The study of the amoeba Paulinella revealed that retrotransposition of endosymbiont-derived nuclear genes was crucial for their domestication in the host.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2022)
Review
Plant Sciences
I. N. Stadnichuk, V. V. Kusnetsov
Summary: The theory of endosymbiotic origin of chloroplasts is fundamental in contemporary biology, involving the emergence of eukaryotic photosynthesis through the phagocytosis of cyanobacteria by ancestral eukaryotic cells. Endosymbiosis is an indispensable element of cell evolution theory, contributing significantly to the diversity and complexity of eukaryotic organisms. This process, along with parallel gene transfer, natural selection theory, and phylogenomics data, has played a crucial role in eukaryogenesis and the development of diverse organelles, ultimately leading to the oxygenation of the biosphere and the modern diversity of living forms.
RUSSIAN JOURNAL OF PLANT PHYSIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Fernando D. K. Tria, Julia Brueckner, Josip Skejo, Joana C. Xavier, Nils Kapust, Michael Knopp, Jessica L. E. Wimmer, Falk S. P. Nagies, Verena Zimorski, Sven B. Gould, Sriram G. Garg, William F. Martin
Summary: Research suggests that the majority of gene duplications in the last eukaryote common ancestor (LECA) were derived from mitochondria, pointing to the bacterial genes in eukaryotes primarily stemming from serial copying from the mitochondria to the archaeal host chromosomes, followed by vertical gene evolution and differential loss across eukaryotic lineages.
GENOME BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Review
Biology
Shin-ya Miyagishima
Summary: Numerous unicellular eukaryotes acquire photosynthesis through symbiotic relationships with algae or by utilizing chloroplasts from prey, and have developed mechanisms to mitigate photosynthetic oxidative stress similar to algae and plants.
COMMUNICATIONS BIOLOGY
(2023)
Review
Plant Sciences
Dong Wook Lee, Inhwan Hwang
Summary: This article reviews the recent findings on the specific targeting of chloroplast and mitochondrial proteins, and discusses the reasons behind the similarity in their import mechanisms and possible evolutionary pathways.
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Emma E. George, Daria Tashyreva, Waldan K. Kwong, Noriko Okamoto, Ales Horak, Filip Husnik, Julius Lukes, Patrick J. Keeling
Summary: Gene transfer agents (GTAs) are virus-like structures that facilitate DNA transfer between prokaryotic cells, and are found in the highly reduced genomes of bacterial endosymbionts from microbial eukaryotes. Studies indicate that GTAs in endosymbionts undergo purifying selection and are likely functional, but their ecological role remains unknown and further research is needed to understand how they contribute to host interactions.
GENOME BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Review
Microbiology
Francisco Mendoza-Hoffmann, Mariel Zarco-Zavala, Raquel Ortega, Heliodoro Celis-Sandoval, Alfredo Torres-Larios, Jose J. Garcia-Trejo
Summary: This study analyzes the evolution of the F1FO-ATPase inhibitory proteins. Results show that various inhibitory proteins have emerged in bacteria, mitochondria, and chloroplasts to selectively block the activity of F1FO-ATPase. The loss of inhibitory function and ATP-binding site correlates with the evolutionary divergence of different subunits. The zeta subunit has replaced epsilon as the primary inhibitor in free-living bacteria, but its inhibitory function is partially or completely lost in some symbiotic and parasitic bacteria.
Article
Microbiology
Nicholas A. T. Irwin, Mona Sabetrasekh, Denis H. Lynn
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Nicholas A. T. Irwin, Benjamin J. E. Martin, Barry P. Young, Martin J. G. Browne, Andrew Flaus, Christopher J. R. Loewen, Patrick J. Keeling, Leann J. Howe
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2018)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Nicholas A. T. Irwin, Denis V. Tikhonenkov, Elisabeth Hehenberger, Alexander P. Mylnikov, Fabien Burki, Patrick J. Keeling
MOLECULAR PHYLOGENETICS AND EVOLUTION
(2019)
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Varsha Mathur, Waldan K. Kwong, Filip Husnik, Nicholas A. T. Irwin, Arni Kristmundsson, Camino Gestal, Mark Freeman, Patrick J. Keeling
Summary: The study sequenced the transcriptomes and apicoplast genomes of three deep-branching apicomplexans, revealing a new lineage that retains plastid genomes and the canonical apicomplexan plastid metabolism. This new lineage, proposed as Marosporida class nov., occupies an intermediate position in apicomplexan phylogeny and adds complexity to the stepwise reductive evolution models in these parasites.
GENOME BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Nicholas A. T. Irwin, Chantelle S. Twynstra, Varsha Mathur, Patrick J. Keeling
Summary: Microbial snow communities thrive on challenging substrates like snow and ice, dominated by green algae with other organisms such as fungi playing important roles in nutrient cycling and community structure. The study reveals the previously unknown taxonomic affiliations of non-algal community members, particularly the unicellular fungus Chionaster nivalis, representing a novel lineage within the class Tremellomycetes. Additionally, comparisons with environmental sequences suggest that these organisms are globally distributed and likely psychrophilic, limited to high alpine and arctic regions.
Article
Microbiology
Nicholas A. T. Irwin, Alexandros A. Pittis, Thomas A. Richards, Patrick J. Keeling
Summary: This study systematically characterized viral-eukaryotic gene exchange, identifying thousands of transfers and revealing their frequency, taxonomic distribution, and predicted functions. The findings highlight the impact of virus-host interactions on evolutionary changes, as well as common strategies employed by viruses to manipulate hosts, such as metabolic reprogramming, proteolytic degradation, and extracellular modification. Additionally, the study implicates genetic exchange in the early evolution and diversification of eukaryotes, particularly through viral-derived glycosyltransferases impacting a wide range of structures.
NATURE MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
V Boscaro, C. C. Holt, N. W. L. Van Steenkiste, M. Herranz, N. A. T. Irwin, P. Alvarez-Campos, K. Grzelak, O. Holovachov, A. Kerbl, V Mathur, N. Okamoto, R. S. Piercey, K. Worsaae, B. S. Leander, P. J. Keeling
Summary: Research reveals that phylosymbiosis is rare across animal lineages, and microorganisms preferentially associated with animals are the main drivers of the ecological relationship, rather than host identity.
NATURE MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Elisabet Alacid, Nicholas A. T. Irwin, Vanessa Smilansky, David S. Milner, Estelle S. Kilias, Guy Leonard, Thomas A. Richards
Summary: This study reveals sequence variation in the SLTS system across the Perkinsozoa, specifically in the parasite Parvilucifera sinerae. The results show that the transcriptome of P. sinerae is segregated based on different spliced-leader exons, suggesting functional differentiation. Furthermore, the SLTS system marks a subsection of the transcriptome with increased mRNA abundance and includes genes necessary for SLTS function.