Happy to share the latest manuscript from our lab, in which we propose that eukaryotes evolved from a genomic chimera of Asgard archaea and giant viruses.

https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.04.22.590592v1

This is a controversial topic, but we believe we have strong evidence to suggest a critical viral role in eukaryogenesis.

#viruses #protists #eukaryotes #evolution #TreeOfLIfe #archaea

Chimeric Origin of Eukaryotes from Asgard Archaea and Ancestral Giant Viruses

The details surrounding the evolution of complex cells remain some of the most enduring mysteries in biology.

^bioRxiv

#Mutualism on the edge: Understanding the #Paramecium–#Chlorella symbiosis https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article?id=10.1371%2Fjournal.pbio.3002563

"Exploring the mechanisms that underpin #symbiosis requires an understanding of how these complex interactions are maintained in diverse model systems. The ciliate #protist, Paramecium bursaria, offers a valuable insight into how emergent endosymbiotic interactions have evolved."

#protists #algae #microbes #ciliates

Nice paper examining virophage-mediated antiviral defense in protists!

Endogenous virophages are active and mitigate giant virus infection in the marine protist Cafeteria burkhardae

https://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pnas.2314606121

#viruses #virology #protists

Tom Cavalier-Smith prize DEADLINE EXTENDED https://www.isep-protists.com/post/tcs-prize-deadline-extended

We are pleased to announce that we are extending the deadline for Tom Cavalier-Smith prize nominations to January 31st, and that in light of the complicating factor of the Covid-19 pandemic, we are extending eligibility to 4 years post-PhD.

The Tom Cavalier-Smith prize recognizes contributions to evolutionary #protistology, or related fields (e.g. #protists #biology, #biodiversity or #ecology), by #EarlyCareerResearchers.

Single-celled #protists in the #guts of #animals thrive without #mitochondria, study finds.

#oxymonads #evolution #phylogenomics

https://phys.org/news/2023-12-single-celled-protists-guts-animals-mitochondria.html

Single-celled protists in the guts of animals thrive without mitochondria, study finds

Almost all eukaryotic organisms, from plants and animals to fungi, can't survive without mitochondria, which generate chemical energy using oxygen.

^{Science X (Phys.org)}

New #ISEPpapers! The #protist #Aurantiochytrium has universal subtelomeric rDNAs and is a host for #mirusviruses: Jackie Collier et al. https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(23)01368-4

#protists #microbes #protistology #microbiology #viruses #virology #genomics

How did #eukaryotes evolve for extreme temps? https://www.futurity.org/high-temp-eukaryotes-2972442-2/ #protists

#ExtremeEnvironments offer an unprecedented opportunity to understand #microbial #eukaryotic #ecology, #evolution, and #genome #biology: Hannah Rappaport & Angela Oliverio https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-40657-4

“several lineages of #amoebae were often recovered from extremely high temperature environments. Studying those lineages may yield great insight into how eukaryotic cells can adapt to life in extremely hot environments.”

Important study from Bellas et al showing that protists have a huge diversity of endogenous DNA viruses in their genomes!

Large-scale invasion of unicellular eukaryotic genomes by integrating DNA viruses

https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2300465120

And a commentary about these exciting findings from @giant_virus and myself -

Endogenous DNA viruses take center stage in eukaryotic genome evolution

https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2305212120

#genomics #protists #viruses