Inference and reconstruction of the heimdallarchaeial ancestry of eukaryotes
(2023) In Nature 618(7967). p.992-999- Abstract
In the ongoing debates about eukaryogenesis-the series of evolutionary events leading to the emergence of the eukaryotic cell from prokaryotic ancestors-members of the Asgard archaea play a key part as the closest archaeal relatives of eukaryotes
1. However, the nature and phylogenetic identity of the last common ancestor of Asgard archaea and eukaryotes remain unresolved
2-4. Here we analyse distinct phylogenetic marker datasets of an expanded genomic sampling of Asgard archaea and evaluate competing evolutionary scenarios using state-of-the-art phylogenomic approaches. We find that eukaryotes are placed, with high confidence, as a well-nested clade within Asgard archaea and as a sister lineage to Hodarchaeales, a newly... (More)In the ongoing debates about eukaryogenesis-the series of evolutionary events leading to the emergence of the eukaryotic cell from prokaryotic ancestors-members of the Asgard archaea play a key part as the closest archaeal relatives of eukaryotes
(Less)
1. However, the nature and phylogenetic identity of the last common ancestor of Asgard archaea and eukaryotes remain unresolved
2-4. Here we analyse distinct phylogenetic marker datasets of an expanded genomic sampling of Asgard archaea and evaluate competing evolutionary scenarios using state-of-the-art phylogenomic approaches. We find that eukaryotes are placed, with high confidence, as a well-nested clade within Asgard archaea and as a sister lineage to Hodarchaeales, a newly proposed order within Heimdallarchaeia. Using sophisticated gene tree and species tree reconciliation approaches, we show that analogous to the evolution of eukaryotic genomes, genome evolution in Asgard archaea involved significantly more gene duplication and fewer gene loss events compared with other archaea. Finally, we infer that the last common ancestor of Asgard archaea was probably a thermophilic chemolithotroph and that the lineage from which eukaryotes evolved adapted to mesophilic conditions and acquired the genetic potential to support a heterotrophic lifestyle. Our work provides key insights into the prokaryote-to-eukaryote transition and a platform for better understanding the emergence of cellular complexity in eukaryotic cells.
- author
- organization
- publishing date
- 2023-06-29
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- in
- Nature
- volume
- 618
- issue
- 7967
- pages
- 8 pages
- publisher
- Nature Publishing Group
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:85161898060
- pmid:37316666
- ISSN
- 0028-0836
- DOI
- 10.1038/s41586-023-06186-2
- project
- It takes two to tango without oxygen: metabolic syntrophy in eukaryotic evolution
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- additional info
- © 2023. The Author(s).
- id
- 139234d0-9118-4982-9b45-fb343c0f70f1
- date added to LUP
- 2023-06-16 11:06:40
- date last changed
- 2024-04-19 22:55:39
@article{139234d0-9118-4982-9b45-fb343c0f70f1, abstract = {{<p>In the ongoing debates about eukaryogenesis-the series of evolutionary events leading to the emergence of the eukaryotic cell from prokaryotic ancestors-members of the Asgard archaea play a key part as the closest archaeal relatives of eukaryotes<br> 1. However, the nature and phylogenetic identity of the last common ancestor of Asgard archaea and eukaryotes remain unresolved<br> 2-4. Here we analyse distinct phylogenetic marker datasets of an expanded genomic sampling of Asgard archaea and evaluate competing evolutionary scenarios using state-of-the-art phylogenomic approaches. We find that eukaryotes are placed, with high confidence, as a well-nested clade within Asgard archaea and as a sister lineage to Hodarchaeales, a newly proposed order within Heimdallarchaeia. Using sophisticated gene tree and species tree reconciliation approaches, we show that analogous to the evolution of eukaryotic genomes, genome evolution in Asgard archaea involved significantly more gene duplication and fewer gene loss events compared with other archaea. Finally, we infer that the last common ancestor of Asgard archaea was probably a thermophilic chemolithotroph and that the lineage from which eukaryotes evolved adapted to mesophilic conditions and acquired the genetic potential to support a heterotrophic lifestyle. Our work provides key insights into the prokaryote-to-eukaryote transition and a platform for better understanding the emergence of cellular complexity in eukaryotic cells.<br> </p>}}, author = {{Eme, Laura and Tamarit, Daniel and Caceres, Eva F and Stairs, Courtney W and De Anda, Valerie and Schön, Max E and Seitz, Kiley W and Dombrowski, Nina and Lewis, William H and Homa, Felix and Saw, Jimmy H and Lombard, Jonathan and Nunoura, Takuro and Li, Wen-Jun and Hua, Zheng-Shuang and Chen, Lin-Xing and Banfield, Jillian F and John, Emily St and Reysenbach, Anna-Louise and Stott, Matthew B and Schramm, Andreas and Kjeldsen, Kasper U and Teske, Andreas P and Baker, Brett J and Ettema, Thijs J G}}, issn = {{0028-0836}}, language = {{eng}}, month = {{06}}, number = {{7967}}, pages = {{992--999}}, publisher = {{Nature Publishing Group}}, series = {{Nature}}, title = {{Inference and reconstruction of the heimdallarchaeial ancestry of eukaryotes}}, url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41586-023-06186-2}}, doi = {{10.1038/s41586-023-06186-2}}, volume = {{618}}, year = {{2023}}, }