engleski

Phylogeny­-Ontogeny Correlations: Lessons From Microbial Biofilms

Many bacteria species form biofilms. These multicellular communities display organised behaviours that resemble to some extent developmental processes in truly multicellular organisms like animals and plants. Ontogenies in multicellular eukaryotes were recently studied by phylo­transcriptomic approaches that uncover phylogeny­ ontogeny correlations during development. Underlying causes of these correlation patterns are still debated; however, they readily demonstrate that true developmental processes harbour macroevolutionary imprints that could be found at the molecular level. To test if similar phylogeny­ontogeny correlations exist in bacterial forms of multicellularity we studied expression patterns in growing Bacillus subtilis biofilms. Our results revealed clear macroevolutionary imprints suggesting that B. subtilis biofilm growth is more complex than previously thought. We discuss these findings in relation to the origin of life, development and major macroevolutionary transitions.

phylogeni ; ontogeny ; biofilm

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