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INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SYSTEMATIC AND EVOLUTIONARY MICROBIOLOGY logo

Volume 67, Issue 9

Molecules illuminate morphology: phylogenomics confirms convergent evolution among ‘oligotrichous’ ciliates Free

Abstract

‘Oligotrichous’ ciliates have been traditionally placed in a presumed monophyletic taxon called the Oligotrichia. However, gene sequences of the small subunit rRNA gene, and several other genes, suggest that the taxon is not monophyletic: although statistical support for this is not strong, the oligotrich is associated with the hypotrich ciliates and not with other oligotrich genera, such as and . This has convinced some taxonomists to emphasize that morphological features strongly support the monophyly of the oligotrichs. To further test this hypothesis of monophyly, we have undertaken a phylogenomic analysis using the transcriptome of cells amplified by a single-cell technique. One hundred and twenty-six of 159 single-gene trees placed as sister to hypotrich species, and phylogenomic analyses based on a subset of 124 genes robustly rejected the monophyly of the Oligotrichia and placed the genus as sister to the hypotrich genera and . We use these phylogenomic analyses to assess the convergent nature of morphological features of oligotrichous ciliates. A particularly ‘strong’ morphological feature supporting monophyly of the oligotrichs is enantiotropic cell division, which our results suggest is nevertheless a convergent feature, arising through the need for dividing ciliates to undertake rotokinesis to complete cell division.

  • Received:
  • Accepted:
  • Published Online:
Keyword(s): Oligotrichs , Oxytricha , phylogeny , Strombidinopsis , Strombidium and Stylonychia
© 2017 IUMS
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2017-09-01
2024-04-18
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Molecules illuminate morphology: phylogenomics confirms convergent evolution among ‘oligotrichous’ ciliates
Int J Syst Evol Microbiol 67, 3676 (2017); https://doi.org/10.1099/ijsem.0.002060
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