The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans has been central to the understanding of metazoan biology. However, C. elegans is but one species among millions and the significance of this important model organism will only be fully revealed if it is placed in a rich evolutionary context. Global sampling efforts have led to the discovery of over 50 putative species from the genus Caenorhabditis, many of which await formal species description. Here, we present species descriptions for 10 new Caenorhabditis species. We also present draft genome sequences for nine of these new species, along with a transcriptome assembly for one. We exploit these whole-genome data to reconstruct the Caenorhabditis phylogeny and use this phylogenetic tree to dissect the evolution of morphology in the genus. We reveal extensive variation in genome size and investigate the molecular processes that underlie this variation. We show unexpected complexity in the evolutionary history of key developmental pathway genes. These new species and the associated genomic resources will be essential in our attempts to understand the evolutionary origins of the C. elegans model.
Uncovering the biodiversity of New Zealand Solenogastres (Mollusca, Aplacophora) with three new species of Proneomeniidae Simroth, 1893 and new data for Dorymenia quincarinata (Ponder, 1970)
- Award ID(s):
- 1846174
- PAR ID:
- 10424753
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Molluscan Research
- Volume:
- 42
- Issue:
- 4
- ISSN:
- 1323-5818
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 271 to 286
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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Abstract -
Abstract Horseshoe crabs as a group are renowned for their morphological conservatism punctuated by marked shifts in morphology associated with the occupation of non-marine environments and have been suggested to exhibit a consistent developmental trajectory throughout their evolutionary history. Here, we report a new species of horseshoe crab from the Ordovician (Late Sandbian) of Kingston, Ontario, Canada, from juvenile and adult material. This new species provides critical insight into the ontogeny and morphology of the earliest horseshoe crabs, indicating that at least some Palaeozoic forms had freely articulating tergites anterior to the fused thoracetron and an opisthosoma comprising 13 segments.more » « less
- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
-
Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.1080/13235818.2022.2143069
