The Ectocarpus genome and the independent evolution of multicellularity in brown algae.
Brown algae (Phaeophyceae) are complex photosynthetic organisms with a very different evolutionary history to green plants, to which they are only distantly related. These seaweeds are the dominant species in rocky coastal ecosystems and they exhibit many interesting adaptations to these, often harsh, environments. Brown algae are also one of only a small number of eukaryotic lineages that have evolved complex multicellularity (Fig. 1). We report the 214 million base pair (Mbp) genome sequence of the filamentous seaweed Ectocarpus siliculosus (Dillwyn) Lyngbye, a model organism for brown algae, closely related to the kelps (Fig. 1). Genome features such as the presence of an extended set of light-harvesting and pigment biosynthesis genes and new metabolic processes such as halide metabolism help explain the ability of this organism to cope with the highly variable tidal environment. The evolution of multicellularity in this lineage is correlated with the presence of a rich array of signal transduction genes. Of particular interest is the presence of a family of receptor kinases, as the independent evolution of related molecules has been linked with the emergence of multicellularity in both the animal and green plant lineages. The Ectocarpus genome sequence represents an important step towards developing this organism as a model species, providing the possibility to combine genomic and genetic approaches to explore these and other aspects of brown algal biology further.
Cock
J Mark
JM
UPMC Université Paris 6, The Marine Plants and Biomolecules Laboratory, UMR 7139, Station Biologique de Roscoff, Place Georges Teissier, BP74, 29682 Roscoff Cedex, France. cock@sb-roscoff.fr
Sterck
Lieven
L
Rouzé
Pierre
P
Scornet
Delphine
D
Allen
Andrew E
AE
Amoutzias
Grigoris
G
Anthouard
Veronique
V
Artiguenave
François
F
Aury
Jean-Marc
JM
Badger
Jonathan H
JH
Beszteri
Bank
B
Billiau
Kenny
K
Bonnet
Eric
E
Bothwell
John H
JH
Bowler
Chris
C
Boyen
Catherine
C
Brownlee
Colin
C
Carrano
Carl J
CJ
Charrier
Bénédicte
B
Cho
Ga Youn
GY
Coelho
Susana M
SM
Collén
Jonas
J
Corre
Erwan
E
Da Silva
Corinne
C
Delage
Ludovic
L
Delaroque
Nicolas
N
Dittami
Simon M
SM
Doulbeau
Sylvie
S
Elias
Marek
M
Farnham
Garry
G
Gachon
Claire M M
CM
Gschloessl
Bernhard
B
Heesch
Svenja
S
Jabbari
Kamel
K
Jubin
Claire
C
Kawai
Hiroshi
H
Kimura
Kei
K
Kloareg
Bernard
B
Küpper
Frithjof C
FC
Lang
Daniel
D
Le Bail
Aude
A
Leblanc
Catherine
C
Lerouge
Patrice
P
Lohr
Martin
M
Lopez
Pascal J
PJ
Martens
Cindy
C
Maumus
Florian
F
Michel
Gurvan
G
Miranda-Saavedra
Diego
D
Morales
Julia
J
Moreau
Hervé
H
Motomura
Taizo
T
Nagasato
Chikako
C
Napoli
Carolyn A
CA
Nelson
David R
DR
Nyvall-Collén
Pi
P
Peters
Akira F
AF
Pommier
Cyril
C
Potin
Philippe
P
Poulain
Julie
J
Quesneville
Hadi
H
Read
Betsy
B
Rensing
Stefan A
SA
Ritter
Andrés
A
Rousvoal
Sylvie
S
Samanta
Manoj
M
Samson
Gaelle
G
Schroeder
Declan C
DC
Ségurens
Béatrice
B
Strittmatter
Martina
M
Tonon
Thierry
T
Tregear
James W
JW
Valentin
Klaus
K
von Dassow
Peter
P
Yamagishi
Takahiro
T
Van de Peer
Yves
Y
Wincker
Patrick
P
D020418:Algal Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D000818:Animals; D005075:Biological Evolution; D056890:Eukaryota; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D016678:Genome / Q000235:genetics*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D000459:Phaeophyceae / Q000166:cytology* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D010802:Phylogeny; D010860:Pigments, Biological / Q000096:biosynthesis; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000235:genetics
D020418:Algal Proteins; D010860:Pigments, Biological