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Evolutionary relationships of eukaryotic kingdoms

S Kumar1, A Rzhetsky

  • 1Department of Biology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park 16802, USA.

Journal of Molecular Evolution
|February 1, 1996
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

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Eukaryotic evolutionary relationships are clarified using ribosomal RNA gene sequences. Animals and fungi are closely related, with red algae as their nearest kin, predating heterokonts and alveolates.

Area of Science:

  • Molecular Evolution
  • Phylogenetics
  • Eukaryotic Biology

Background:

  • The evolutionary relationships among the four eukaryotic kingdoms (Animalia, Plantae, Fungi, Protista) are not well-established.
  • Previous analyses of molecular sequences have not provided strong statistical support for the precise branching order of these major eukaryotic lineages.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To clarify the evolutionary relationships of major eukaryotic lineages using a comprehensive dataset.
  • To statistically test hypotheses about the branching order within the eukaryotic tree of life.

Main Methods:

  • Statistical analysis of 214 nuclear small-subunit ribosomal RNA (srRNA) gene sequences.
  • Consideration of variable substitution rates and nucleotide substitution non-independence across sites.

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  • Testing alternative phylogenetic branching patterns.

    • Main Results:

    • Identified substantial variation in evolutionary rates across srRNA gene sites, approximated by a gamma distribution (shape parameter = 0.76).
    • Found strong statistical support that animals and true fungi are each other's closest relatives within crown eukaryotes.
    • Determined red algae to be the closest relatives to the combined lineage of animals, true fungi, and green plants.
    • Inferred that heterokonts and alveolates diverged earlier than the red algae and animal-fungus-green-plant lineages.

    Conclusions:

    • The study provides robust evidence for the phylogenetic proximity of animals and fungi.
    • Red algae represent a key lineage in early eukaryotic evolution, closely related to land plants and fungi.
    • The early branching order of some eukaryotic lineages remains challenging to resolve definitively with srRNA sequence data.