Our recent paper in Current Biology (Burki et al. 2013. 23:1541-1547) discussed in 24hrs and The Ubyssey

Dispatch by Mark van der Giezen on our recent paper in Current Biology (Burki et al. 2013. 23:1541-1547): Phylogenomics of the intracellular parasite Mikrocytos mackini reveals evidence for a mitosome in Rhizaria.

Mikrocytos mackini is an intracellular protistan parasite of oysters whose position in the phylogenetic tree of eukaryotes has been a mystery for many years. M. mackini is difficult to isolate, has not been cultured, and has no defining morphological feature. Furthermore, its only phylogenetic marker that has been successfully sequenced to date (the small subunit ribosomal RNA) is highly divergent and has failed to resolve its evolutionary position. M. mackini is also one of the few eukaryotes that lacks mitochondria, making both its phylogenetic position and comparative analysis of mitochondrial function particularly important. Here, we have obtained transcriptomic data for M. mackini from enriched isolates and constructed a 119-gene phylogenomic data set. M. mackini proved to be among the fastest-evolving eukaryote lineages known to date, but, nevertheless, our analysis robustly placed it within Rhizaria. Searching the transcriptome for genetic evidence of a mitochondrion-related organelle (MRO) revealed only four mitochondrion-derived genes: IscS, IscU, mtHsp70, and FdxR. Interestingly, all four genes are involved in iron- sulfur cluster formation, a biochemical pathway common to other highly reduced ‘‘mitosomes’’ in unrelated MRO-containing lineages. This is the first evidence of MRO in Rhizaria, and it suggests the parallel evolution of mitochondria to mitosomes in this supergroup.

Cryptophyte and chlorarachniophyte algae are transitional forms in the widespread secondary endosymbiotic acquisition of photosynthesis by engulfment of eukaryotic algae. Unlike most secondary plastid-bearing algae, miniaturized versions of the endosymbiont nuclei (nucleomorphs) persist in cryptophytes and chlorarachniophytes. To determine why, and to address other fundamental questions about eukaryote–eukaryote endosymbiosis, we sequenced the nuclear genomes of the cryptophyte Guillardia theta and the chlorarachniophyte Bigelowiella natans. Both genomes have .21,000 protein genes and are intron rich, and B. natans exhibits unprecedented alternative splicing for a single-celled organism. Phylogenomic analyses and subcellular targeting predictions reveal extensive genetic and biochemical mosaicism, with both host- and endosymbiont-derived genes servicing the mitochondrion, the host cell cytosol, the plastid and the remnant endosymbiont cytosol of both algae. Mitochondrion-to-nucleus gene transfer still occurs in both organisms but plastid-to-nucleus and nucleomorph-to-nucleus transfers do not, which explains why a small residue of essential genes remains locked in each nucleomorph.