RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Expanding diversity of Asgard archaea and the elusive ancestry of eukaryotes
JF bioRxiv
FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
SP 2020.10.19.343400
DO 10.1101/2020.10.19.343400
A1 Yang Liu
A1 Kira S. Makarova
A1 Wen-Cong Huang
A1 Yuri I. Wolf
A1 Anastasia Nikolskaya
A1 Xinxu Zhang
A1 Mingwei Cai
A1 Cui-Jing Zhang
A1 Wei Xu
A1 Zhuhua Luo
A1 Lei Cheng
A1 Eugene V. Koonin
A1 Meng Li
YR 2020
UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2020/10/20/2020.10.19.343400.abstract
AB Comparative analysis of 162 (nearly) complete genomes of Asgard archaea, including 75 not reported previously, substantially expands the phylogenetic and metabolic diversity of the Asgard superphylum, with six additional phyla proposed. Phylogenetic analysis does not strongly support origin of eukaryotes from within Asgard, leaning instead towards a three-domain topology, with eukaryotes branching outside archaea. Comprehensive protein domain analysis in the 162 Asgard genomes results in a major expansion of the set of eukaryote signature proteins (ESPs). The Asgard ESPs show variable phyletic distributions and domain architectures, suggestive of dynamic evolution via horizontal gene transfer (HGT), gene loss, gene duplication and domain shuffling. The results appear best compatible with the origin of the conserved core of eukaryote genes from an unknown ancestral lineage deep within or outside the extant archaeal diversity. Such hypothetical ancestors would accumulate components of the mobile archaeal ‘eukaryome’ via extensive HGT, eventually, giving rise to eukaryote-like cells.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.