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Gotta Go Slow: Two Evolutionarily Distinct Annelids Retain a Common Hedgehog Pathway Composition, Outlining Its

Sofia Platova1,2, Liudmila Poliushkevich1, Milana Kulakova1,2

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PubMed
Summary

Hedgehog (Hh) signaling, crucial for development, was studied in annelids. These animals possess nearly complete Hh pathway components, suggesting an ancestral bilaterian state more similar to vertebrates than insects.

Keywords:
Platynereis dumeriliiPygopsio elegansSpiraliaannelidshedgehog signalingmolecular evolutionpathwaytranscriptome analysis

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Area of Science:

  • Developmental Biology
  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • Hedgehog (Hh) signaling regulates key processes like morphogenesis, cell differentiation, and regeneration across bilaterians.
  • While conserved, Hh pathway components and mechanisms differ between Ecdysozoa (e.g., fruit flies) and Deuterostomia (e.g., vertebrates).
  • Understanding the ancestral Hh pathway requires studying the underrepresented Spiralia clade.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the Hedgehog signaling pathway composition in two spiralian annelids: Platynereis dumerilii and Pygospio elegans.
  • To compare the annelid Hh pathway with those found in model organisms like Drosophila and vertebrates to infer ancestral states.

Main Methods:

  • Transcriptome analysis of Platynereis dumerilii and Pygospio elegans.
  • Phylogenetic analysis of core Hh pathway components.
  • Multiple sequence alignments of additional Hh pathway members.

Main Results:

  • Both annelids express nearly all Hh pathway components found in Drosophila and vertebrates.
  • The Hh pathway composition in these annelids shows greater similarity to vertebrates than to Drosophila.
  • Annelids possess mostly single-copy Hh pathway members.

Conclusions:

  • The Hedgehog signaling pathway in spiralian annelids, with its near-complete set of single-copy components, may represent the ancestral condition for all bilaterians.
  • This finding highlights the importance of spiralians in understanding the evolution of fundamental developmental pathways.
  • Annelid Hh pathway composition offers insights into the divergence between Ecdysozoa and Deuterostomia.