ArticleGenome biology and evolution2017
Amoebozoans Are Secretly but Ancestrally Sexual: Evidence for Sex Genes and Potential Novel Crossover Pathways in Diverse Groups of Amoebae.
Article in Genome biology and evolution, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 19 papers.
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Who cites it
19 citing papers in PubMed.
- Cryptic sex in Leishmania depends on SPO11 paralogs.PLoS pathogens · 2026Article
- Cryptic Sex inbioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Visualizing Epigenetics: A Review of Microscopy Techniques for Investigating DNA Methylation Patterns, Chromatin Structure, and Gene Expression.Microscopy and microanalysis : the official journal of Microscopy Society of America, Microbeam Analysis Society, Microscopical Society of Canada · 2025Review
- Single-cell transcriptomics supports presence of cryptic species and reveals low levels of population genetic diversity in two testate amoebae morphospecies with large population sizes.Evolution; international journal of organic evolution · 2023Article
- Omics of an Enigmatic Marine Amoeba Uncovers Unprecedented Gene Trafficking from Giant Viruses and Provides Insights into Its Complex Life Cycle.Microbiology research · 2023Article
- Giant cells: multiple cells unite to survive.Frontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2023Review
- The draft genome of Cochliopodium minus reveals a complete meiosis toolkit and provides insight into the evolution of sexual mechanisms in Amoebozoa.Scientific reports · 2022Article
- Variation of natural selection in the Amoebozoa reveals heterogeneity across the phylogeny and adaptive evolution in diverse lineages.Frontiers in ecology and evolution · 2022Article
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- Opinion: Genetic Conflict With Mobile Elements Drives Eukaryotic Genome Evolution, and Perhaps Also Eukaryogenesis.The Journal of heredity · 2021Article
- Genomes of early-diverging streptophyte algae shed light on plant terrestrialization.Nature plants · 2020Article
- Article
- Comparative Genomics Supports Sex and Meiosis in Diverse Amoebozoa.Genome biology and evolution · 2018Article
- Comparative genomics of bdelloid rotifers: Insights from desiccating and nondesiccating species.PLoS biology · 2018Article
- What Kills the Hindgut Flagellates of Lower Termites during the Host Molting Cycle?Microorganisms · 2017Review
- Genetic Evidence for Sexuality in Cochliopodium (Amoebozoa).The Journal of heredity · 2017Article
- Between a Pod and a Hard Test: The Deep Evolution of Amoebae.Molecular biology and evolution · 2017Article
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Sex is beneficial in eukaryotes as it can increase genetic diversity, reshuffle their genomes, and purge deleterious mutations. Yet, its evolution remains a mystery. The eukaryotic clade supergroup Amoebozoa encompasses diverse lineages of polymorphic amoeboid forms, including both free-living and parasitic lineages. The group is generally believed to be asexual, though recent studies show that some of its members are implicated in cryptic forms of sexual cycles. In this study, we conduct a comprehensive inventory and analysis of genes involved in meiosis and related processes, in order to investigate the evolutionary history of sex in the clade. We analyzed genomic and transcriptomic data of 39 amoebozoans representing all major subclades of Amoebozoa. Our results show that Amoebozoa possess most of the genes exclusive to meiosis but lack genes encoding synaptonemal complex (SC). The absence of SC genes is discussed in the context of earlier studies that reported ultrastructural evidence of SC in some amoebae. We also find interclade and intrageneric variation in sex gene distribution, indicating diversity in sexual pathways in the group. Particularly, members of Mycetozoa engage in a novel sexual pathway independent of the universally conserved meiosis initiator gene, SPO11. Our findings strongly suggest that not only do amoebozoans possess sex genes in their genomes, but also, based on the transcriptome evidence, the present sex genes are functional. We conclude that Amoebozoa is ancestrally sexual, contrary to the long held belief that most of its members are asexual. Thus, asexuality in Amoebozoa, if confirmed to be present, is a derived-trait that appeared later in their evolution.
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