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Updated: Feb 13, 2026

Using Phylogenetic Analysis to Investigate Eukaryotic Gene Origin
Published on: August 14, 2018
Demystifying Eukaryote Lateral Gene Transfer (Response to Martin 2017 DOI: 10.1002/bies.201700115)
Michelle M Leger1, Laura Eme2, Courtney W Stairs2
1Institute of Evolutionary Biology (CSIC-UPF), Pg. Marítim de la Barceloneta, Barcelona, ES 08003, Spain.
Abstract:
In a recent BioEssays paper [W. F. Martin, BioEssays 2017, 39, 1700115], William Martin sharply criticizes evolutionary interpretations that involve lateral gene transfer (LGT) into eukaryotic genomes. Most published examples of LGTs in eukaryotes, he suggests, are in fact contaminants, ancestral genes that have been lost from other extant lineages, or the result of artefactual phylogenetic inferences. Martin argues that, except for transfers that occurred from endosymbiotic organelles, eukaryote LGT is insignificant. Here, in reviewing this field, we seek to correct some of the misconceptions presented therein with regard to the evidence for LGT in eukaryotes.
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