scholarly journals Evolutionary mysteries in meiosis

2016 ◽  
Vol 371 (1706) ◽  
pp. 20160001 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Lenormand ◽  
Jan Engelstädter ◽  
Susan E. Johnston ◽  
Erik Wijnker ◽  
Christoph R. Haag
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Reproduction ◽  
Life Cycles ◽  
Sexual Life ◽  
Model Organisms ◽  
Evolutionary Significance ◽  
Crossover Interference ◽  
Selective Pressures

Meiosis is a key event of sexual life cycles in eukaryotes. Its mechanistic details have been uncovered in several model organisms, and most of its essential features have received various and often contradictory evolutionary interpretations. In this perspective, we present an overview of these often ‘weird’ features. We discuss the origin of meiosis (origin of ploidy reduction and recombination, two-step meiosis), its secondary modifications (in polyploids or asexuals, inverted meiosis), its importance in punctuating life cycles (meiotic arrests, epigenetic resetting, meiotic asymmetry, meiotic fairness) and features associated with recombination (disjunction constraints, heterochiasmy, crossover interference and hotspots). We present the various evolutionary scenarios and selective pressures that have been proposed to account for these features, and we highlight that their evolutionary significance often remains largely mysterious. Resolving these mysteries will likely provide decisive steps towards understanding why sex and recombination are found in the majority of eukaryotes. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Weird sex: the underappreciated diversity of sexual reproduction’.

scholarly journals Evolutionary mysteries in meiosis

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Lenormand ◽  
Jan Engelstadter ◽  
Susan E. Johnston ◽  
Erik Wijnker ◽  
Christoph R. Haag
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycles ◽  
Sexual Life ◽  
Model Organisms ◽  
Evolutionary Significance ◽  
Crossover Interference ◽  
Selective Pressures

AbstractMeiosis is a key event of sexual life cycles in eukaryotes. Its mechanistic details have been uncovered in several model organisms, and most of its essential features have received various and often contradictory evolutionary interpretations. In this perspective, we present an overview of these often “weird” features. We discuss the origin of meiosis (origin of ploidy reduction and recombination, two-step meiosis), its secondary modifications (in polyploids or asexuals, inverted meiosis), its importance in punctuating life cycles (meiotic arrests, epigenetic resetting, meiotic asymmetry, meiotic fairness) and features associated with recombination (disjunction constraints, heterochiasmy, crossover interference and hotspots). We present the various evolutionary scenarios and selective pressures that have been proposed to account for these features, and we highlight that their evolutionary significance often remains largely mysterious. Resolving these mysteries will likely provide decisive steps towards understanding why sex and recombination are found in the majority of eukaryotes.

scholarly journals Sexual conflict and the evolution of asexuality at low population densities

2016 ◽  
Vol 283 (1841) ◽  
pp. 20161280 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nina Gerber ◽  
Hanna Kokko
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Harassment ◽  
Sexual Reproduction ◽  
Sexual Conflict ◽  
Life Cycles ◽  
Sexual Life ◽  
Relative Advantage ◽  
Male Mating ◽  
Population Densities ◽  
Asexual Populations ◽  
Sexual Life Cycle

Theories for the evolution of sex rarely include facultatively sexual reproduction. Sexual harassment by males is an underappreciated factor: it should at first sight increase the relative advantage of asexual reproduction by increasing the cost of sex. However, if the same females can perform either sexual or asexual life cycles, then females trying to reproduce asexually may not escape harassment. If resisting male harassment is costly, it might be beneficial for a female to accept a mating and undertake a sexual life cycle rather than ‘insist’ on an asexual one. We investigate the effects of sexual harassment on the maintenance of sex under different population densities. Our model shows that resisting matings pays off at low population densities, which leads to the complete extinction of males, and thus to the evolution of completely asexual populations. Facultative sex persists in a narrow range of slightly higher densities. At high densities, selection favours giving up resisting male mating attempts and thus sexual reproduction takes over. These interactions between the outcomes of sexual conflict and population density suggest an explanation for the rarity of facultative sex and also patterns of geographical parthenogenesis, where marginal environments with potentially low densities are associated with asexuality.

scholarly journals Dimorphism in cryptophytes—The case of Teleaulax amphioxeia/Plagioselmis prolonga and its ecological implications

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (37) ◽  
pp. eabb1611 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Altenburger ◽  
H. E. Blossom ◽  
L. Garcia-Cuetos ◽  
H. H. Jakobsen ◽  
J. Carstensen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Reproduction ◽  
Inorganic Nitrogen ◽  
Early Spring ◽  
Life Cycles ◽  
Sexual Life ◽  
Dissolved Inorganic Nitrogen ◽  
High Genetic Diversity ◽  
Adverse Conditions ◽  
Ecological Implications ◽  
Unicellular Organisms

Growing evidence suggests that sexual reproduction might be common in unicellular organisms, but observations are sparse. Limited knowledge of sexual reproduction constrains understanding of protist ecology. Although Teleaulax amphioxeia and Plagioselmis prolonga are common marine cryptophytes worldwide, and are also important plastid donors for some kleptoplastic ciliates and dinoflagellates, the ecology and development of these protists are poorly known. We demonstrate that P. prolonga is the haploid form of the diploid T. amphioxeia and describe the seasonal dynamics of these two life stages. The diploid T. amphioxeia dominates during periods of high dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) and low irradiance, temperature, and grazing (winter and early spring), whereas the haploid P. prolonga becomes more abundant during the summer, when DIN is low and irradiance, temperature, and grazing are high. Dimorphic sexual life cycles might explain the success of this species by fostering high genetic diversity and enabling endurance in adverse conditions.

scholarly journals Unholy marriages and eternal triangles: how competition in the mushroom life cycle can lead to genomic conflict

2016 ◽  
Vol 371 (1706) ◽  
pp. 20150533 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sabine Vreeburg ◽  
Kristiina Nygren ◽  
Duur K. Aanen
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Sexual Reproduction ◽  
Male Gamete ◽  
Life Cycles ◽  
Spore Formation ◽  
Sexual Life ◽  
Gamete Fusion ◽  
Extramarital Affairs ◽  
Living Apart Together ◽  
Genomic Conflict

In the vast majority of sexual life cycles, fusion between single-celled gametes is directly followed by nuclear fusion, leading to a diploid zygote and a lifelong commitment between two haploid genomes. Mushroom-forming basidiomycetes differ in two key respects. First, the multicellular haploid mating partners are fertilized in their entirety, each cell being a gamete that simultaneously can behave as a female, i.e. contributing the cytoplasm to a zygote by accepting nuclei, and a male gamete, i.e. only donating nuclei to the zygote. Second, after gamete union, the two haploid genomes remain separate so that the main vegetative stage, the dikaryon, has two haploid nuclei per cell. Only when the dikaryon produces mushrooms, do the nuclei fuse to enter a short diploid stage, immediately followed by meiosis and haploid spore formation. So in basidiomycetes, gamete fusion and genome mixing (sex) are separated in time. The ‘living apart together’ of nuclei in the dikaryon maintains some autonomy for nuclei to engage in a relationship with a different nucleus. We show that competition among the two nuclei of the dikaryon for such ‘extramarital affairs’ may lead to genomic conflict by favouring genes beneficial at the level of the nucleus, but deleterious at that of the dikaryon. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Weird sex: the underappreciated diversity of sexual reproduction’.

Definitions and concepts of reproductive biology of diatoms (terminological glossary)

2017 ◽  
Vol 51 ◽  
pp. 71-105 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. A. Davidovich
Keyword(s):  
Mating System ◽  
Sexual Reproduction ◽  
Reproductive Biology ◽  
World Literature ◽  
Russian Literature ◽  
Life Cycles ◽  
Transfer Of Knowledge ◽  
Research Experience ◽  
Key Terms

The absence of a conceptual terminology, sufficiently developed and widely accepted in the Russian literature, significantly hinders progress in the field of reproductive biology of diatoms, restricts communication and debate, prevents training and transfer of knowledge. The present work is an attempt, based on world literature and our own research experience, to summarize, systematize, add, and clarify the existing terms, concepts and definitions related to research which are focused on sex and sexual reproduction in diatoms. A glossary of key terms (more than 200, including synonyms) is provided. Terms refer to diatom reproductive biology, life cycles, fertilization, mating system, gender (including inheritance and determination of sex, as well as inheritance associated with sex). Contradictions between possible interpretations of certain terms are briefly discussed.

Molecular basis of adaptive evolution of sperm motility involved in in vivo fertilization of terrestrial animals

Impact ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 (6) ◽  
pp. 73-75
Author(s):  
Akihiko Watanabe
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Reproduction ◽  
Sperm Motility ◽  
Asexual Reproduction ◽  
Acrosome Reaction ◽  
Sperm Morphology ◽  
Adaptive Potential ◽  
Selective Pressures ◽  
The Face ◽  
Genetic Profiles

One of the unifying traits of life on this planet is reproduction, or life's ability to make copies of itself. The mode of reproduction has evolved over time, having almost certainly begun with simple asexual reproduction when the ancestral single celled organism divided into two. Since these beginnings' life has tried out numerous strategies, and perhaps one of the most important and successful has been sexual reproduction. This form of reproduction relies on the union of gametes, otherwise known as sperm and egg. Evolutionarily, sexual reproduction allows for greater adaptive potential because the genes of two unique individuals have a chance to recombine and mix in order to produce a new individual. Unlike asexual reproduction which produces genetically-identical clones of the parent individual, sex produces offspring with novel genes and combinations of genes. Therefore, in the face of new selective pressures there is a higher chance that one of these novel genetic profiles will produce an adaptation that is advantageous in the new circumstances. Dr Akihiko Watanabe is a reproductive biologist based in the Department of Biology, Faculty of Science Yamagata University in Japan, he is currently working on three research projects; a comparative study on the signalling pathways for inducing sperm motility and acrosome reaction in amphibians, the mechanism behind the adaptive modification of sperm morphology and motility, and the origin of sperm motility initiating substance (SMIS).

Dormant plasticity of rotifer diapausing eggs in response to predator kairomones

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (11) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xuwang Yin ◽  
Yuecen Zhao ◽  
Shuang Tian ◽  
Xiaochun Li
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycles ◽  
Freshwater Ecosystems ◽  
Sexual Life ◽  
Hatching Rate ◽  
Ecological Implication ◽  
Maternal Environment ◽  
Predator Prey ◽  
Diapausing Eggs ◽  
Embryonic Exposure ◽  
Phenotypic Responses

In freshwater ecosystems, hatching strategy of diapausing eggs (DEs) under predation risk has important ecological implication for zooplankters. Although kairomones released by predators can induce phenotypic responses of prey, hatching patterns of DEs in response to kairomones have received contradictory conclusions in zooplankters. Maternal environment may also affect hatching strategy of DEs during predator–prey interactions. We used classical Brachionus calyciflorus – Asplanchna models to determine the timing and proportion of DE hatching in association with parental and embryonic exposure to kairomones. Results obtained from two Brachionus clones supported the hypothesis that DEs could detect Asplanchna kairomones and adjust hatching patterns. DEs showed early and synchronous hatching patterns in the environment with kairomones. Data also supported the prediction that DEs could gain information about predators from maternal environments and adjusted their hatching pattern in response to the presence of kairomones. Compared with DEs from Brachionus mothers not exposed to kairomones, DEs produced by mothers that were experienced with kairomones attained a higher hatching rate when both of them hatched in the environment either with or without kairomones. Our results suggest that DEs of B . calyciflorus possess dormant plasticity to defend against predation from Asplanchna , which may be regulated by maternal environmental effects during sexual life cycles.

scholarly journals Genome sequence of the model rice variety KitaakeX

BMC Genomics ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rashmi Jain ◽  
Jerry Jenkins ◽  
Shengqiang Shu ◽  
Mawsheng Chern ◽  
Joel A. Martin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Functional Genomics ◽  
De Novo ◽  
Rice Variety ◽  
Rice Genome ◽  
Life Cycles ◽  
Model Organisms ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Rice Varieties ◽  
Protein Coding ◽  
High Quality Genome

Abstract Background The availability of thousands of complete rice genome sequences from diverse varieties and accessions has laid the foundation for in-depth exploration of the rice genome. One drawback to these collections is that most of these rice varieties have long life cycles, and/or low transformation efficiencies, which limits their usefulness as model organisms for functional genomics studies. In contrast, the rice variety Kitaake has a rapid life cycle (9 weeks seed to seed) and is easy to transform and propagate. For these reasons, Kitaake has emerged as a model for studies of diverse monocotyledonous species. Results Here, we report the de novo genome sequencing and analysis of Oryza sativa ssp. japonica variety KitaakeX, a Kitaake plant carrying the rice XA21 immune receptor. Our KitaakeX sequence assembly contains 377.6 Mb, consisting of 33 scaffolds (476 contigs) with a contig N50 of 1.4 Mb. Complementing the assembly are detailed gene annotations of 35,594 protein coding genes. We identified 331,335 genomic variations between KitaakeX and Nipponbare (ssp. japonica), and 2,785,991 variations between KitaakeX and Zhenshan97 (ssp. indica). We also compared Kitaake resequencing reads to the KitaakeX assembly and identified 219 small variations. The high-quality genome of the model rice plant KitaakeX will accelerate rice functional genomics. Conclusions The high quality, de novo assembly of the KitaakeX genome will serve as a useful reference genome for rice and will accelerate functional genomics studies of rice and other species.

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