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Testing the Role of Multicopy Plasmids in the Evolution of Antibiotic Resistance

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Published on: May 2, 2018

Evolution: a turn up for the worms.

D T J Littlewood¹, Andrea Waeschenbach¹

¹Department of Life Sciences, Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD, UK.

Current Biology : CB

|June 3, 2015

Summary

Extensive transcriptome sequencing clarifies flatworm evolutionary links, revealing novel origins and complex pathways toward parasitism in these diverse organisms.

Area of Science:

* Evolutionary Biology
* Genomics
* Parasitology

Background:

* Flatworms (Platyhelminthes) represent a diverse phylum with significant ecological and medical importance.
* Understanding their evolutionary history, particularly the origins of parasitism, is crucial for biological and medical research.
* Previous phylogenetic analyses have yielded conflicting results regarding major lineage relationships and the evolution of parasitic lifestyles.

Purpose of the Study:

* To reconstruct the evolutionary relationships among major flatworm lineages using comprehensive transcriptomic data.
* To investigate the evolutionary origins and diversification of parasitic flatworms.
* To resolve conflicting phylogenetic hypotheses and establish a robust evolutionary framework for Platyhelminthes.

Main Methods:

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* High-throughput sequencing of transcriptomes from a wide range of flatworm species, including free-living and parasitic forms.
* Bioinformatic analyses including gene orthology detection, phylogenetic tree reconstruction using various methods (e.g., maximum likelihood, Bayesian inference), and molecular clock analyses.
* Comparative genomic analyses to identify genes associated with parasitic adaptations.

Main Results:

* Transcriptomic data provide a high-resolution phylogenetic framework, resolving previously ambiguous relationships among major flatworm clades.
* The study identifies novel evolutionary roots for key flatworm lineages.
* Analysis reveals multiple, potentially independent, evolutionary transitions to parasitism across different lineages, suggesting conflicting routes rather than a single origin.

Conclusions:

* The evolutionary history of flatworms is more complex than previously understood, with significant revisions to the established phylogeny.
* Parasitism has evolved independently multiple times within the flatworm phylum, highlighting convergent evolution.
* These findings provide a new foundation for understanding flatworm diversity, evolution, and the development of parasitic diseases.