Phylogenetic relationships of annelids,molluscs, and arthropods evidenced from molecules and morphology

Annelids and arthropods have long been considered each other's closest relatives, as evidenced by similarities in their segmented body plans. An alternative view, more recently advocated by investigators who have examined partial 18S ribosomal RNA data, proposes that annelids, molluscs, and certain other minor phyla with trochophore larva stages share a more recent common ancestor with one another than any do with arthropods. The two hypotheses are mutually exclusive in explaining spiralian relationships. Cladistic analysis of morphological data does not reveal phylogentic relationships among major spiralian taxa but does suggest monophyly for both the annelids and molluscs. Distance and maximum-likelihood analyses of 18S rRNA gene sequences from major spiralian taxa suggest a sister relationship between annelids and molluscs and provide a clear resolution within the major groups of the spiralians. The parsimonious tree based on molecular data, however, indicates a sister relationship of the Annelida and Bivalvia, and an earlier divergence of the Gastropoda than the Annelida–Bivalvia clade. To test further hypotheses on the phylogenetic relationships among annelids, molluscs, and arthropods, and the ingroup relationships within the major spiralian taxa, we combine the molecular and morphological data sets and subject the combined data matrix to parsimony analysis. The resulting tree suggests that the molluscs and annelids form a monophyletic lineage and unites the molluscan taxa to a monophyletic group. Therefore, the result supports the Eutrochozoa hypothesis and the monophyly of molluscs, and indicates early acquisition of segmented body plans in arthropods. Received: 25 September 1995 / Accepted: 15 March 1996     

Evolutionary Relationships Among the Eukaryotic Crown Taxa Taking into Account Site-to-Site Rate Variation in 18S rRNA

In this study we constructed a bootstrapped distance tree of 500 small subunit ribosomal RNA sequences from organisms belonging to the so-called crown of eukaryote evolution. Taking into account the substitution rate of the individual nucleotides of the rRNA sequence alignment, our results suggest that (1) animals, true fungi, and choanoflagellates share a common origin: The branch joining these taxa is highly supported by bootstrap analysis (bootstrap support [BS] > 90%), (2) stramenopiles and alveolates are sister groups (BS = 75%), (3) within the alveolates, dinoflagellates and apicomplexans share a common ancestor BS > 95%), while in turn they both share a common origin with the ciliates (BS > 80%), and (4) within the stramenopiles, heterokont algae, hyphochytriomycetes, and oomycetes form a monophyletic grouping well supported by bootstrap analysis (BS > 85%), preceded by the well-supported successive divergence of labyrinthulomycetes and bicosoecids. On the other hand, many evolutionary relationships between crown taxa are still obscure on the basis of 18S rRNA. The branching order between the animal-fungal-choanoflagellates clade and the chlorobionts, the alveolates and stramenopiles, red algae, and several smaller groups of organisms remains largely unresolved. When among-site rate variation is not considered, the inferred tree topologies are inferior to those where the substitution rate spectrum for the 18S rRNA is taken into account. This is primarily indicated by the erroneous branching of fast-evolving sequences. Moreover, when different substitution rates among sites are not considered, the animals no longer appear as a monophyletic grouping in most distance trees. Received: 11 June 1997 / Accepted: 21 July 1997     

Molecular clocks, molecular phylogenies and the origin of phyla

Erwin, Douglas H. 1989 07 15: Molecular clocks, molecular phylogenies and the origin of phyla. Lethaia , Vol. 22, pp. 251–257. Oslo. ISSN 0024–1164.
Protein, RNA and DNA sequences have been widely used to construct phylogenies and to calculate divergence times using a molecular clock. Reliance on molecular information is particularly attractive when fossil evidence is missing or equivocal, as in the Cambrian metazoan radiation. I consider the applicability of molecular clocks and phylogenetic analysis of molecular data to the origin of metazoan phyla, and conclude that molecular information is often ambiguous or misleading. Amino acid sequences are of limited use because the redundancy of the genetic code masks patterns of descent, while in a nucleotide sequence only four potential states exist at each site (the four nucleotide bases). In each case, homoplasy may often go undetected. The application of a molecular clock to resolve the timing of the metazoan radiation is unwarranted, while molecular phylogenetic reconstruction should be approached with care. A potentially more useful technique for phylogenetic reconstruction would be the use of patterns of genome structure and organization as characters. * Molecular clock, phylogenetics, metazoan radiation, origin of phyla .     

Nuclear and Nucleomorph SSU rDNA Phylogeny in the Cryptophyta and the Evolution of Cryptophyte Diversity

The plastid-bearing members of the Cryptophyta contain two functional eukaryotic genomes of different phylogenetic origin, residing in the nucleus and in the nucleomorph, respectively. These widespread and diverse protists thus offer a unique opportunity to study the coevolution of two different eukaryotic genomes within one group of organisms. In this study, the SSU rRNA genes of both genomes were PCR-amplified with specific primers and phylogenetic analyses were performed on different data sets using different evolutionary models. The results show that the composition of the principal clades obtained from the phylogenetic analyses of both genes was largely congruent, but striking differences in evolutionary rates were observed. These affected the topologies of the nuclear and nucleomorph phylogenies differently, resulting in long-branch attraction artifacts when simple evolutionary models were applied. Deletion of long-branch taxa stabilized the internal branching order in both phylogenies and resulted in a completely resolved topology in the nucleomorph phylogeny. A comparison of the tree topologies derived from SSU rDNA sequences with characters previously used in cryptophyte systematics revealed that the biliprotein type was congruent, but the type of inner periplast component incongruent, with the molecular trees. The latter is indicative of a hidden cellular dimorphism (cells with two periplast types present in a single clonal strain) of presumably widespread occurrence throughout cryptophyte diversity, which, in consequence, has far-reaching implications for cryptophyte systematics as it is practiced today.     

Molecular Evolution of the Metazoan Extracellular Matrix: Cloning and Expression of Structural Proteins from the Demosponges Suberites domuncula and Geodia cydonium

One crucial event during evolution to multicellularity was the development of either direct cell–cell contact or indirect interaction via extracellular matrix (ECM) molecules. The identification of those polypeptides provides conclusive data on the phylogenetic relationship of metazoan phyla and helps us to understand the position of the Metazoa among the other kingdoms. Recently it became evident that the ECM of sponges is amazingly complex; it is composed of fibrous molecules, e.g., collagen, and their corresponding receptors, which are highly similar to those existing in other metazoan phyla. While these data already support the view of monophyly of Metazoa, additional studies are required to understand whether these molecules, which are similar in their primary sequence, also have the same function throughout the metazoan kingdom. In the present study we identified the ligand for one of the autopomorphic characters of Metazoa, the single-transmembrane receptor protein with the receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) from G. cydonium, as an example: the putative mucus-like protein from G. cydonium. This protein was upregulated during autograft fusion in the homologous system with kinetics similar to those of the RTK. Additionally, a cDNA was isolated from S. domuncula whose deduced polypeptide displays a high sequence similarity to dermatopontin, an ECM molecule found exclusively in Metazoa. Furthermore, it is documented that expression of the fibrous ECM molecule collagen is regulated by the characteristic metazoan morphogens myotrophin and endothelial monocyte-activating polypeptide. These data indicate that the ECM of sponges is not an unstructured ground substance but provides the basis for integrated cell communication. Received: 26 October 2000 / Accepted: 1 February 2001     

Complex Patterns of Plastid 16S rRNA Gene Evolution in Nonphotosynthetic Green Algae

This study provides a phylogenetic/comparative approach to deciphering the processes underlying the evolution of plastid rRNA genes in genomes under relaxed functional constraints. Nonphotosynthetic green algal taxa that belong to two distinct classes, Chlorophyceae (Polytoma) and Trebouxiophyceae (Prototheca), were investigated. Similar to the situation described previously for plastid 16S rRNA genes in nonphotosynthetic land plants, nucleotide substitution levels, extent of structural variations, and percentage AT values are increased in nonphotosynthetic green algae compared to their closest photosynthetic relatives. However, the mutational processes appear to be different in many respects. First, with the increase in AT content, more transversions are noted in Polytoma and holoparasite angiosperms, while more transitions characterize the evolution of the 16S rDNA sequences in Prototheca. Second, although structural variations do accumulate in both Polytoma and Prototheca (as well as holoparasitic plastid 16S rRNAs), insertions as large as 1.6 kb characterize the plastid 16S rRNA genes in the former, whereas significantly smaller indels (not exceeding 24 bp) seem to be more prevalent in the latter group. The differences in evolutionary rates and patterns within and between lineages might be due to mutations in replication/repair-related genes; slipped-strand mispairing is likely the mechanism responsible for the expansion of insertions in Polytoma plastid 16S rRNA genes. Received: 29 December 2000 / Accepted: 18 May 2001     

Mitochondrial DNA of the coral sarcophyton glaucum contains a gene for a homologue of bacterial muts: A possible case of gene transfer from the nucleus to the mitochondrion

The nucleotide sequences of two segments of 6,737 ntp and 258 ntp of the 18.4-kb circular mitochondrial (mt) DNA molecule of the soft coral Sarcophyton glaucum (phylum Cnidaria, class Anthozoa, subclass Octocorallia, order Alcyonacea) have been determined. The larger segment contains the 3′ 191 ntp of the gene for subunit 1 of the respiratory chain NADH dehydrogenase (ND1), complete genes for cytochrome b (Cyt b), ND6, ND3, ND4L, and a bacterial MutS homologue (MSH), and the 5′ terminal 1,124 ntp of the gene for the large subunit rRNA (l-rRNA). These genes are arranged in the order given and all are transcribed from the same strand of the molecule. The smaller segment contains the 3′ terminal 134 ntp of the ND4 gene and a complete tRNA^f-Met gene, and these genes are transcribed in opposite directions. As in the hexacorallian anthozoan, Metridium senile, the mt-genetic code of S. glaucum is near standard: that is, in contrast to the situation in mt-genetic codes of other invertebrate phyla, AGA and AGG specify arginine, and ATA specifies isoleucine. However, as appears to be universal for metazoan mt-genetic codes, TGA specifies tryptophan rather than termination. Also, as in M. senile the mt-tRNA^f-Met gene has primary and secondary structural features resembling those of Escherichia coli initiator tRNA, including standard dihydrouridine and TψC loop sequences, and a mismatched nucleotide pair at the top of the amino-acyl stem. The presence of a mutS gene homologue, which has not been reported to occur in any other known mtDNA, suggests that there is mismatch repair activity in S. glaucum mitochondria. In support of this, phylogenetic analysis of MutS family protein sequences indicates that the S. glaucum mtMSH protein is more closely related to the nuclear DNA-encoded mitochondrial mismatch repair protein (MSH1) of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae than to eukaryotic homologues involved in nuclear function, or to bacterial homologues. Regarding the possible origin of the S. glaucum mtMSH gene, the phylogenetic analysis results, together with comparative base composition considerations, and the absence of an MSH gene in any other known mtDNA best support the hypothesis that S. glaucum mtDNA acquired the mtMSH gene from nuclear DNA early in the evolution of octocorals. The presence of mismatch repair activity in S. glaucum mitochondria might be expected to influence the rate of evolution of this organism's mtDNA. Received: 13 January 1997 / Accepted: 23 September 1997     

Partial Sequence of a Sponge Mitochondrial Genome Reveals Sequence Similarity to Cnidaria in Cytochrome Oxidase Subunit II and the Large Ribosomal RNA Subunit

A 2550-bp portion of the mitochondrial genome of a Demosponge, genus Tetilla, was amplified from whole genomic DNA extract and sequenced. The sequence was found to code for the 3′ end of the 16S rRNA gene, cytochrome c oxidase subunit II, a lysine tRNA, ATPase subunit 8, and a 5′ portion of ATPase subunit 6. The Porifera cluster distinctly within the eumetazoan radiation, as a sister group to the Cnidaria. Also, the mitochondrial genetic code of this sponge is likely identical to that found in the Cnidaria. Both the full COII DNA and protein sequences and a portion of the 16S rRNA gene were found to possess a striking similarity to published Cnidarian mtDNA sequences, allying the Porifera more closely to the Cnidaria than to any other metazoan phylum. The gene arrangement, COII—tRNA^Lys—ATP8—ATP6, is observed in many Eumetazoan phyla and is apparently ancestral in the metazoa. Received: 24 November 1997 / Accepted: 14 September 1998     

Performance of 18S rRNA in Littorinid Phylogeny (Gastropoda: Caenogastropoda)

In the past, 18S rRNA sequences have proved to be very useful for tracing ancient divergences but were rarely used for resolving more recent ones. Moreover, it was suggested that the molecule does not contain useful information to resolve divergences which took place during less than 40 Myr. The present paper takes littorinid phylogeny as a case study to reevaluate the utility of the molecule for resolving recent divergences. Two data sets for nine species of the snail family Littorinidae were analyzed, both separately and combined. One data set comprised 7 new complete 18S rRNA sequences aligned with 2 published littorinid sequences; the other comprised 12 morphological, 1 biochemical, and 2 18S rRNA secondary structure characters. On the basis of its ability to confirm generally accepted relationships and the congruence of results derived from the different data sets, it is concluded that 18S rRNA sequences do contain information to resolve ``rapid' cladogenetic events, provided that they occurred in the not too distant past. 18S rRNA sequences yielded support for (1) the branching order (L. littorea, (L. obtusata, (L. saxatilis, L. compressa))) and (2) the basal position of L. striata in the Littorina clade. Received: 6 February 1998 / Accepted: 20 March 1998     

Efficiency of the Neighbor-Joining Method in Reconstructing Deep and Shallow Evolutionary Relationships in Large Phylogenies

The neighbor-joining (NJ) method is widely used in reconstructing large phylogenies because of its computational speed and the high accuracy in phylogenetic inference as revealed in computer simulation studies. However, most computer simulation studies have quantified the overall performance of the NJ method in terms of the percentage of branches inferred correctly or the percentage of replications in which the correct tree is recovered. We have examined other aspects of its performance, such as the relative efficiency in correctly reconstructing shallow (close to the external branches of the tree) and deep branches in large phylogenies; the contribution of zero-length branches to topological errors in the inferred trees; and the influence of increasing the tree size (number of sequences), evolutionary rate, and sequence length on the efficiency of the NJ method. Results show that the correct reconstruction of deep branches is no more difficult than that of shallower branches. The presence of zero-length branches in realized trees contributes significantly to the overall error observed in the NJ tree, especially in large phylogenies or slowly evolving genes. Furthermore, the tree size does not influence the efficiency of NJ in reconstructing shallow and deep branches in our simulation study, in which the evolutionary process is assumed to be homogeneous in all lineages. Received: 7 March 2000 / Accepted: 2 August 2000     

Multiple Substitutions Affect the Phylogenetic Utility of Cytochrome b and 12S rDNA Data: Examining a Rapid Radiation in Leporid (Lagomorpha) Evolution

Partial sequences of two mitochondrial genes, the 12S ribosomal gene (739 bp) and the cytochrome b gene (672 bp), were analyzed in hopes of reconstructing the evolutionary relationships of 11 leporid species, representative of seven genera. However, partial cytochrome b sequences were of little phylogenetic value in this study. A suite of pairwise comparisons between taxa revealed that at the intergeneric level, the cytochrome b gene is saturated at synonymous coding positions due to multiple substitution events. Furthermore, variation at the nonsynonymous positions is limited, rendering the cytochrome b gene of little phylogenetic value for assessing the relationships between leporid genera. If the cytochrome b data are analyzed without accounting for these two classes of nucleotides (i.e., synonymous and nonsynonymous sites), one may incorrectly conclude that signal exists in the cytochrome b data. The mitochondrial 12S rRNA gene, on the other hand, has not experienced excessive saturation at either stem or loop positions. Phylogenies reconstructed from the 12S rDNA data support hypotheses based on fossil evidence that African rock rabbits (Pronolagus) are outside of the main leporid stock and that leporids experienced a rapid radiation. However, the molecular data suggest that this radiation event occurred in the mid-Miocene several millions of years earlier than the Pleistocene dates suggested by paleontological evidence. Received: 23 April 1998 / Accepted: 14 May 1998     

Characterization of Mitochondrial Small-Subunit Ribosomal RNAs from Holoparasitic Plants

Mitochondrial small-subunit (19S) rDNA sequences were obtained from 10 angiosperms to further characterize sequence divergence levels and structural variation in this molecule. These sequences were derived from seven holoparasitic (nonphotosynthetic) angiosperms as well as three photosynthetic plants. 19S rRNA is composed of a conservative core region (ca. 1450 nucleotides) as well as two variable regions (V1 and V7). In pairwise comparisons of photosynthetic angiosperms to Glycine, the core 19S rDNA sequences differed by less than 1.4%, thus supporting the observation that variation in mitochondrial rDNA is 3–4 times lower than seen in protein coding and rDNA genes of other subcellular organelles. Sequences representing four distinct lineages of nonasterid holoparasites showed significantly increased numbers of substitutions in their core 19S rDNA sequences (2.3–7.6%), thus paralleling previous findings that showed accelerated rates in nuclear (18S) and plastid (16S) rDNA from the same plants. Relative rate tests confirmed the accelerated nucleotide substitution rates in the holoparasites whereas rates in nonparasitic plants were not significantly increased. Among comparisons of both parasitic and nonparasitic plants, transversions outnumbered transitions, in many cases more than two to one. The core 19S rRNA is conserved in sequence and structure among all nonparasitic angiosperms whereas 19S rRNA from members of holoparasitic Balanophoraceae have unique extensions to the V5 and V6 variable domains. Substitution and insertion/deletion mutations characterized the V1 and V7 regions of the nonasterid holoparasites. The V7 sequence of one holoparasite (Scybalium) contained repeat motifs. The cause of substitution rate increases in the holoparasites does not appear to be a result of RNA editing, hence the underlying molecular mechanism remains to be fully documented. Received: 18 May 1997 / Accepted: 11 July 1997     

Phylogeny of Nematoda and Cephalorhyncha Derived from 18S rDNA

Phylogenetic relationships of nematodes, nematomorphs, kinorhynchs, priapulids, and some other major groups of invertebrates were studied by 18S rRNA gene sequencing. Kinorhynchs and priapulids form the monophyletic Cephalorhyncha clade that is the closest to the coelomate animals. When phylogenetic trees were generated by different methods, the position of nematomorphs appeared to be unstable. Inclusion of Enoplus brevis, a representative of a slowly evolving nematode lineage, in the set of analyzed species refutes the tree patterns, previously derived from molecular data, where the nematodes appear as a basal bilateral lineage. The nematodes seem to be closer to the coelomate animals than was speculated earlier. According to the results obtained, nematodes, nematomorphs, tardigrades, arthropods, and cephalorhynchs are a paraphyletic association of closely related taxa. Received: 1 December 1997 / Accepted: 9 April 1998     

Phylogenetic Depth of the Bacterial Genera Aquifex and Thermotoga Inferred from Analysis of Ribosomal Protein, Elongation Factor, and RNA Polymerase Subunit Sequences

The phylogenetic placement of the Aquifex and Thermotoga lineages has been inferred from (i) the concatenated ribosomal proteins S10, L3, L4, L23, L2, S19, L22, and S3 encoded in the S10 operon (833 aa positions); (ii) the joint sequences of the elongation factors Tu(1α) and G(2) coded by the str operon tuf and fus genes (733 aa positions); and (iii) the joint RNA polymerase β- and β′-type subunits encoded in the rpoBC operon (1130 aa positions). Phylogenies of r-protein and EF sequences support with moderate (r-proteins) to high statistical confidence (EFs) the placement of the two hyperthermophiles at the base of the bacterial clade in agreement with phylogenies of rRNA sequences. In the more robust EF-based phylogenies, the branching of Aquifex and Thermotoga below the successive bacterial lineages is given at bootstrap proportions of 82% (maximum likelihood; ML) and 85% (maximum parsimony; MP), in contrast to the trees inferred from the separate EF-Tu(1α) and EF-G(2) data sets, which lack both resolution and statistical robustness. In the EF analysis MP outperforms ML in discriminating (at the 0.05 level) trees having A. pyrophilus and T. maritima as the most basal lineages from competing alternatives that have (i) mesophiles, or the Thermus genus, as the deepest bacterial radiation and (ii) a monophyletic A. pyrophilus–T. maritima cluster situated at the base of the bacterial clade. RNAP-based phylogenies are equivocal with respect to the Aquifex and Thermotoga placements. The two hyperthermophiles fall basal to all other bacterial phyla when potential artifacts contributed by the compositionally biased and fast-evolving Mycoplasma genitalium and Mycoplasma pneumoniae sequences are eschewed. However, the branching order of the phyla is tenuously supported in ML trees inferred by the exhaustive search method and is unresolved in ML trees inferred by the quartet puzzling algorithm. A rooting of the RNA polymerase-subunit tree at the mycoplasma level seen in both the MP trees and the ML trees reconstructed with suboptimal amino acid substitution models is not supported by the EF-based phylogenies which robustly affiliate mycoplasmas with low-G+C gram-positives and, most probably, reflects a ``long branch attraction' artifact. Received: 22 September 1999 / Accepted: 11 January 2000     

Evolved RNA Secondary Structure and the Rooting of the Universal Tree of Life

The origin and diversification of RNA secondary structure were traced using cladistic methods. Structural components were coded as polarized and ordered multi-state characters, following a model of character state transformation outlined by considerations in statistical mechanics. Several classes of functional RNA were analyzed, including ribosomal RNA (rRNA). Considerable phylogenetic signal was present in their secondary structure. The intrinsically rooted phylogenies reconstructed from evolved RNA structure depicted those derived from nucleic acid sequence at all taxonomical levels, and grouped organisms in concordance with traditional classification, especially in the archaeal and eukaryal domains. Natural selection appears therefore to operate early in the information flow that originates in sequence and ends in an adapted phenotype. When examining the hierarchical classification of the living world, phylogenetic analysis of secondary structure of the small and large rRNA subunits reconstructed a universal tree of life that branched in three monophyletic groups corresponding to Eucarya, Archaea, and Bacteria, and was rooted in the eukaryotic branch. Ribosomal characters involved in the translational cycle could be easily traced and showed that transfer RNA (tRNA) binding domains in the large rRNA subunit evolved concurrently with the rest of the rRNA molecule. Results suggest it is equally parsimonious to consider that ancestral unicellular eukaryotes or prokaryotes gave rise to all extant life forms and provide a rare insight into the early evolution of nucleic acid and protein biosynthesis. Received: 13 September 2000 / Accepted: 27 August 2001     

An upgraded comprehensive multilocus phylogeny of the Tardigrada tree of life

Providing accurate animals’ phylogenies rely on increasing knowledge of neglected phyla. Tardigrada diversity evaluated in broad phylogenies (among phyla) is biased towards eutardigrades. A comprehensive phylogeny is demanded to establish the representative diversity and propose a more natural classification of the phylum. So, we have performed multilocus (18S rRNA and 28S rRNA) phylogenies with Bayesian inference and maximum likelihood. We propose the creation of a new class within Tardigrada, erecting the order Apochela (Eutardigrada) as a new Tardigrada class, named Apotardigrada comb. n. Two groups of evidence support its creation: (a) morphological, presence of cephalic appendages, unique morphology for claws (separated branches) and wide‐elongated buccopharyngeal apparatus without placoids, and (b) phylogenetic support based on molecular data. Consequently, order Parachela is suppressed and its superfamilies erected as orders within Eutardigrada, maintaining their current names. We propose a new classification within the family Echiniscidae (Echiniscoidea, Heterotardigrada) with morphological and phylogenetic support: (a) subfamily Echiniscinae subfam. n., with two tribes Echiniscini tribe n. and Bryodelphaxini tribe n.; (b) subfamily Pseudechiniscinae subfam. n., with three tribes Cornechiniscini tribe n., Pseudechiniscini tribe n. and Anthechiniscini tribe n.; and (c) subfamily Parechiniscinae subfam. n., with two tribes Parechiniscini tribe n. and Novechiniscini tribe n. Reliable biodiversity selection for tardigrades in broad phylogenies is proposed due to biased analyses performed up to now. We use our comprehensive molecular phylogeny to evaluate the evolution of claws in the clawless genus Apodibius and claw reduction across the Tardigrada tree of life. Evolutionary consequences are discussed.     

Molecular evolution of a portion of the mitochondrial 16S ribosomal gene region in scleractinian corals

Relationships among families and suborders of scleractinian corals are poorly understood because of difficulties 1) in making inferences about the evolution of the morphological characters used in coral taxonomy and 2) in interpreting their 240-million-year fossil record. Here we describe patterns of molecular evolution in a segment of the mitochondrial (mt) 16S ribosomal gene from taxa of 14 families of corals and the use of this gene segment in a phylogenetic analysis of relationships within the order. We show that sequences obtained from scleractinians are homologous to other metazoan 16S ribosomal sequences and fall into two distinct clades defined by size of the amplified gene product. Comparisons of sequences from the two clades demonstrate that both sets of sequences are evolving under similar evolutionary constraints: they do not differ in nucleotide composition, numbers of transition and transversion substitutions, spatial patterns of substitutions, or in rates of divergence. The characteristics and patterns observed in these sequences as well as the secondary structures, are similar to those observed in mt 16S ribosomal DNA sequences from other taxa. Phylogenetic analysis of these sequences shows that they are useful for evaluating relationships within the order. The hypothesis generated from this analysis differs from traditional hypotheses for evolutionary relationships among the Scleractinia and suggests that a reevaluation of evolutionary affinities in the order is needed. Received: 4 September 1996 / Accepted: 7 April 1997     

Phylogeny of Ultra-Rapidly Evolving Dinoflagellate Chloroplast Genes: A Possible Common Origin for Sporozoan and Dinoflagellate Plastids

Complete chloroplast 23S rRNA and psbA genes from five peridinin-containing dinoflagellates (Heterocapsa pygmaea, Heterocapsa niei, Heterocapsa rotun-data, Amphidinium carterae, and Protoceratium reticulatum) were amplified by PCR and sequenced; partial sequences were obtained from Thoracosphaera heimii and Scrippsiella trochoidea. Comparison with chloroplast 23S rRNA and psbA genes of other organisms shows that dinoflagellate chloroplast genes are the most divergent and rapidly evolving of all. Quartet puzzling, maximum likelihood, maximum parsimony, neighbor joining, and LogDet trees were constructed. Intersite rate variation and invariant sites were allowed for with quartet puzzling and neighbor joining. All psbA and 23S rRNA trees showed peridinin-containing dinoflagellate chloroplasts as monophyletic. In psbA trees they are related to those of chromists and red algae. In 23S rRNA trees, dinoflagellates are always the sisters of Sporozoa (apicomplexans); maximum likelihood analysis of Heterocapsa triquetra 16S rRNA also groups the dinoflagellate and sporozoan sequences, but the other methods were inconsistent. Thus, dinoflagellate chloroplasts may actually be related to sporozoan plastids, but the possibility of reproducible long-branch artifacts cannot be strongly ruled out. The results for all three genes fit the idea that dinoflagellate chloroplasts originated from red algae by a secondary endosymbiosis, possibly the same one as for chromists and Sporozoa. The marked disagreement between 16S rRNA trees using different phylogenetic algorithms indicates that this is a rather poor molecule for elucidating overall chloroplast phylogeny. We discuss possible reasons why both plastid and mitochondrial genomes of alveolates (Dinozoa, Sporozoa and Ciliophora) have ultra-rapid substitution rates and a proneness to unique genomic rearrangements. Received: 27 December 1999 / Accepted: 24 March 2000     

Variation patterns of the mitochondrial 16S rRNA gene with secondary structure constraints and their application to phylogeny of cyprinine fishes (Teleostei: Cypriniformes)

The mitochondrial 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene sequences from 93 cyprinid fishes were examined to reconstruct the phylogenetic relationships within the diverse and economically important subfamily Cyprininae. Within the subfamily a biased nucleotide composition (A>T, C>G) was observed in the loop regions of the gene, and in stem regions apparent selective pressures of base pairing showed a bias in favor of G over C and T over A. The bias may be associated with transition-transversion bias. Rates of nucleotide substitution were lower in stems than in loops. Analysis of compensatory substitutions across these taxa demonstrates 68% covariation in the gene and a logical weighting factor to account for dependence in mutations for phylogenetic inference should be 0.66. Comparisons of varied stem-loop weighting schemes indicate that the down-weightings for stem regions could improve the phylogenetic analysis and the degree of non-independence of stem substitutions was not as important as expected. Bayesian inference under four models of nucleotide substitution indicated that likelihood-based phylogenetic analyses were more effective in improving the phylogenetic performance than was weighted parsimony analysis. In Bayesian analyses, the resolution of phylogenies under the 16-state models for paired regions, incorporating GTR + G + I models for unpaired regions was better than those under other models. The subfamily Cyprininae was resolved as a monophyletic group, as well as tribe Labein and several genera. However, the monophyly of the currently recognized tribes, such as Schizothoracin, Barbin, Cyprinion + Onychostoma lineages, and some genera was rejected. Furthermore, comparisons of the parsimony and Bayesian analyses and results of variable length bootstrap analysis indicates that the mitochondrial 16S rRNA gene should contain important character variation to recover well-supported phylogeny of cyprinid taxa whose divergences occurred within the recent 8 MY, but could not provide resolution power for deep phylogenies spanning 10-19 MYA.