Factors promoting the evolution of kleptoplasty in sacoglossan sea slugs

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26650132
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Evolutionary biology
• Research Institution: Nara Women's University
• Principal Investigator: Yusa Yoichi 奈良女子大学, 自然科学系, 教授 (60355641)
• Research Collaborator: Nakano Rie ; Hirano Yayoi ; Kitaura Jun ; Miyamoto Ayaka ; Hirokane Yu ; Shiroyama Hiromi
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: 進化 / 盗葉緑体 / 嚢舌類 / 光合成 / 系統

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Sacoglossan sea slugs can incorporate chloroplasts from their food algae and utilize them for photosynthesis. Although the duration of functional chloroplast retention differs greatly among species from 0 (non-retention) to several months, it is not fully understood when and why the ability of photosynthesis evolved.
We collected data on the duration of photosynthesis and environmental factors possibly related to the evolution of photosynthetic ability for 40 sacoglossan species. Moreover, we constructed a molecular phylogeny of 219 sacoglossans including newly sequenced ones, and inferred the ancestral states concerning photosynthetic ability.
The results showed that both the acquisition and long-term retention of photosynthetic ability evolved multiple times in the sacoglossan lineage. Food quality might be an important factor that influenced their evolution.

Free Research Field

生態学