ArticleNature ecology & evolution2019
The genome of the jellyfish Aurelia and the evolution of animal complexity.
Article in Nature ecology & evolution, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 64 papers.
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64 citing papers in PubMed, 138 citations in OpenAlex.
- Haplotype-resolved chromosomal-level genome assembly of Mastigias papua.Scientific data · 2026Article
- A single-cell transcriptomic atlas reveals the emergence of medusa-specific cell states in the scyphozoan Aurelia coerulea.PLoS biology · 2026Article
- Single-cell analyses of tissue regeneration in two true jellyfish.Molecular biology and evolution · 2026Article
- Deciphering the ancestral mechanisms of neural regeneration through single-cell analyses of jellyfish rhopalium repair.Science advances · 2026Article
- The anti-neural role of BMP signaling is a consequence of its ancestral function in dorsoventral patterning.PLoS biology · 2026Article
- Chromosome-level genome assembly and annotation of the moon jellyfish Aurelia coerulea.Scientific data · 2026Article
- Haplotype-resolved chromosomal-level genome assembly of Chrysaora achlyos (black sea nettle).Scientific data · 2026Article
- Microbiome modulation in regeneration in jellyfish.PloS one · 2026Article
- The chromosomal genome sequence of the moon jellyfish,Wellcome open research · 2026Article
- G-protein-coupled receptor diversity and evolution in the closest living relatives of metazoa.eLife · 2025Article
- Article
- Investigating the evolution and features of regeneration using cnidarians.Integrative and comparative biology · 2025Review
- Jellyfish Venom-Induced Cardiotoxicity and Immune Responses: Mechanisms and Potential Therapeutic Strategies.Marine drugs · 2025Review
- Genome assembly of Bougainvillia cf. muscus (Cnidaria: Hydrozoa).G3 (Bethesda, Md.) · 2025Article
- Comparative Analysis of Convergent Jellyfish Eyes Reveals Extensive Differences in Expression of Vision-Related Genes.Ecology and evolution · 2025Article
- Genomes of the Caribbean reef-building corals Colpophyllia natans, Dendrogyra cylindrus, and Siderastrea siderea.G3 (Bethesda, Md.) · 2025Article
- A whole-body atlas of BMP signaling activity in an adult sea anemone.BMC biology · 2025Article
- Changes of cell-type diversity in the polyp-to-medusa metagenesis of the scyphozoan jellyfishbioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
- Genomes of the Caribbean reef-building coralsbioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2024Article
- Genomic and single-cell analyses reveal genetic signatures of swimming pattern and diapause strategy in jellyfish.Nature communications · 2024Article
4 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
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Authors and funding
10 authors at 7 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
We present the genome of the moon jellyfish Aurelia, a genome from a cnidarian with a medusa life stage. Our analyses suggest that gene gain and loss in Aurelia is comparable to what has been found in its morphologically simpler relatives-the anthozoan corals and sea anemones. RNA sequencing analysis does not support the hypothesis that taxonomically restricted (orphan) genes play an oversized role in the development of the medusa stage. Instead, genes broadly conserved across animals and eukaryotes play comparable roles throughout the life cycle. All life stages of Aurelia are significantly enriched in the expression of genes that are hypothesized to interact in protein networks found in bilaterian animals. Collectively, our results suggest that increased life cycle complexity in Aurelia does not correlate with an increased number of genes. This leads to two possible evolutionary scenarios: either medusozoans evolved their complex medusa life stage (with concomitant shifts into new ecological niches) primarily by re-working genetic pathways already present in the last common ancestor of cnidarians, or the earliest cnidarians had a medusa life stage, which was subsequently lost in the anthozoans. While we favour the earlier hypothesis, the latter is consistent with growing evidence that many of the earliest animals were more physically complex than previously hypothesized.
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