The expanding Asgard archaea and their elusive relationships with Eukarya
Abstract The discovery of Asgard archaea and the exploration of their diversity over the last 6 years have deeply impacted the scientific community working on eukaryogenesis, rejuvenating an intense debate on the topology of the universal tree of life (uTol). Here, we discuss how this debate is impa...
| Main Authors: | , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Wiley
2022-03-01
|
| Series: | mLife |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/mlf2.12012 |
| _version_ | 1797857794128347136 |
|---|---|
| author | Violette Da Cunha Morgan Gaïa Patrick Forterre |
| author_facet | Violette Da Cunha Morgan Gaïa Patrick Forterre |
| author_sort | Violette Da Cunha |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract The discovery of Asgard archaea and the exploration of their diversity over the last 6 years have deeply impacted the scientific community working on eukaryogenesis, rejuvenating an intense debate on the topology of the universal tree of life (uTol). Here, we discuss how this debate is impacted by two recent publications that expand the number of Asgard lineages and eukaryotic signature proteins (ESPs). We discuss some of the main difficulties that can impair the phylogenetic reconstructions of the uTol and suggest that the debate about its topology is not settled. We notably hypothesize the existence of horizontal gene transfers between ancestral Asgards and proto‐eukaryotes that could result in the observed abnormal behaviors of some Asgard ESPs and universal marker proteins. This hypothesis is relevant regardless of the scenario considered regarding eukaryogenesis. It implies that the Asgards were already diversified before the last eukaryotic common ancestor and shared the same biotopes with proto‐eukaryotes. We suggest that some Asgards might be still living in symbiosis today with modern Eukarya. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-09T21:02:35Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-08ea129cb50645e3af8e0313f75e0148 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2770-100X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-09T21:02:35Z |
| publishDate | 2022-03-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | mLife |
| spelling | doaj.art-08ea129cb50645e3af8e0313f75e01482023-03-29T06:46:58ZengWileymLife2770-100X2022-03-011131210.1002/mlf2.12012The expanding Asgard archaea and their elusive relationships with EukaryaViolette Da Cunha0Morgan Gaïa1Patrick Forterre2CEA, CNRS, Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (I2BC) Université Paris‐Saclay Gif‐sur‐Yvette FranceGénomique Métabolique, Génoscope, Institut François Jacob, CEA, CNRS Univ. Evry, Université Paris‐Saclay Evry FranceCEA, CNRS, Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (I2BC) Université Paris‐Saclay Gif‐sur‐Yvette FranceAbstract The discovery of Asgard archaea and the exploration of their diversity over the last 6 years have deeply impacted the scientific community working on eukaryogenesis, rejuvenating an intense debate on the topology of the universal tree of life (uTol). Here, we discuss how this debate is impacted by two recent publications that expand the number of Asgard lineages and eukaryotic signature proteins (ESPs). We discuss some of the main difficulties that can impair the phylogenetic reconstructions of the uTol and suggest that the debate about its topology is not settled. We notably hypothesize the existence of horizontal gene transfers between ancestral Asgards and proto‐eukaryotes that could result in the observed abnormal behaviors of some Asgard ESPs and universal marker proteins. This hypothesis is relevant regardless of the scenario considered regarding eukaryogenesis. It implies that the Asgards were already diversified before the last eukaryotic common ancestor and shared the same biotopes with proto‐eukaryotes. We suggest that some Asgards might be still living in symbiosis today with modern Eukarya.https://doi.org/10.1002/mlf2.12012Asgardhorizontal gene transfermolecular phylogenytree of life |
| spellingShingle | Violette Da Cunha Morgan Gaïa Patrick Forterre The expanding Asgard archaea and their elusive relationships with Eukarya mLife Asgard horizontal gene transfer molecular phylogeny tree of life |
| title | The expanding Asgard archaea and their elusive relationships with Eukarya |
| title_full | The expanding Asgard archaea and their elusive relationships with Eukarya |
| title_fullStr | The expanding Asgard archaea and their elusive relationships with Eukarya |
| title_full_unstemmed | The expanding Asgard archaea and their elusive relationships with Eukarya |
| title_short | The expanding Asgard archaea and their elusive relationships with Eukarya |
| title_sort | expanding asgard archaea and their elusive relationships with eukarya |
| topic | Asgard horizontal gene transfer molecular phylogeny tree of life |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/mlf2.12012 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT violettedacunha theexpandingasgardarchaeaandtheirelusiverelationshipswitheukarya AT morgangaia theexpandingasgardarchaeaandtheirelusiverelationshipswitheukarya AT patrickforterre theexpandingasgardarchaeaandtheirelusiverelationshipswitheukarya AT violettedacunha expandingasgardarchaeaandtheirelusiverelationshipswitheukarya AT morgangaia expandingasgardarchaeaandtheirelusiverelationshipswitheukarya AT patrickforterre expandingasgardarchaeaandtheirelusiverelationshipswitheukarya |