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De novo origin of multicellularity in response to predation

View ORCID ProfileMatthew D. Herron, Josh M. Borin, Jacob C. Boswell, Jillian Walker, I-Chen Kimberly Chen, Charles A. Knox, Margrethe Boyd, Frank Rosenzweig, William C. Ratcliff
doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/247361
Matthew D. Herron
Georgia Institute of Technology;
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  • For correspondence: xprinceps@gmail.com
Josh M. Borin
Georgia Institute of Technology;
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Jacob C. Boswell
Georgia Institute of Technology;
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Jillian Walker
Georgia Institute of Technology;
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I-Chen Kimberly Chen
Georgia Institute of Technology;
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Charles A. Knox
University of Montana
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Margrethe Boyd
University of Montana
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Frank Rosenzweig
Georgia Institute of Technology;
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William C. Ratcliff
Georgia Institute of Technology;
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Abstract

The transition from unicellular to multicellular life was one of a few major events in the history of life that created new opportunities for more complex biological systems to evolve. Predation is hypothesized as one selective pressure that may have driven the evolution of multicellularity. Here we show that de novo origins of simple multicellularity can evolve in response to predation. We subjected outcrossed populations of the unicellular green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii to selection by the filter-feeding predator Paramecium tetraurelia. Two of five experimental populations evolved multicellular structures not observed in unselected control populations within ~750 asexual generations. Considerable variation exists in the evolved multicellular life cycles, with both cell number and propagule size varying among isolates. Survival assays show that evolved multicellular traits provide effective protection against predation. These results support the hypothesis that selection imposed by predators may have played a role in some origins of multicellularity.

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  • We have revised the preprint in response to comments and added supplementary files.

Copyright 
The copyright holder for this preprint is the author/funder, who has granted bioRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity. It is made available under a CC-BY 4.0 International license.
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Posted June 07, 2018.
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De novo origin of multicellularity in response to predation
Matthew D. Herron, Josh M. Borin, Jacob C. Boswell, Jillian Walker, I-Chen Kimberly Chen, Charles A. Knox, Margrethe Boyd, Frank Rosenzweig, William C. Ratcliff
bioRxiv 247361; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/247361
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De novo origin of multicellularity in response to predation
Matthew D. Herron, Josh M. Borin, Jacob C. Boswell, Jillian Walker, I-Chen Kimberly Chen, Charles A. Knox, Margrethe Boyd, Frank Rosenzweig, William C. Ratcliff
bioRxiv 247361; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/247361

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