We found a match
Your institution may have access to this item. Find your institution then sign in to continue.
- Title
Intracellular signaling in proto-eukaryotes evolves to alleviate regulatory conflicts of endosymbiosis.
- Authors
von der Dunk, Samuel H. A.; Hogeweg, Paulien; Snel, Berend
- Abstract
The complex eukaryotic cell resulted from a merger between simpler prokaryotic cells, yet the role of the mitochondrial endosymbiosis with respect to other eukaryotic innovations has remained under dispute. To investigate how the regulatory challenges associated with the endosymbiotic state impacted genome and network evolution during eukaryogenesis, we study a constructive computational model where two simple cells are forced into an obligate endosymbiosis. Across multiple in silico evolutionary replicates, we observe the emergence of different mechanisms for the coordination of host and symbiont cell cycles, stabilizing the endosymbiotic relationship. In most cases, coordination is implicit, without signaling between host and symbiont. Signaling only evolves when there is leakage of regulatory products between host and symbiont. In the fittest evolutionary replicate, the host has taken full control of the symbiont cell cycle through signaling, mimicking the regulatory dominance of the nucleus over the mitochondrion that evolved during eukaryogenesis. Author summary: Virtually all life forms visible by the naked eye are eukaryotes, complex cells with a nucleus, mitochondria and many other subcellular structures as well as the regulatory mechanisms to organize this intricate subcellular environment. Most steps in the complexification of eukaryotes still remain under dispute due to limited direct data. However, it is clear that eukaryotes originate from the merger between two simpler cells that were engaged in an endosymbiotic relationship, i.e. the mitochondrial endosymbiosis. We here use a multilevel computational model to investigate how this crucial event in the origin of eukaryotes could contribute to the evolution of complexity. As many details about the endosymbiosis are unknown, our model confronts host and symbiont organisms with several fundamental challenges that we hypothesize to arise from the nature of their relationship—such as coordination of growth and coping with transfer of regulatory molecules and DNA. To overcome these challenges the cells in our model evolve new regulatory mechanisms and various communication channels. Moreover, multiple replicate evolutionary trajectories lead to various alternative control strategies, allowing us to broadly explore the consequences of an obligate endosymbiotic relationship and its impact on genomic and regulatory complexity.
- Subjects
ENDOSYMBIOSIS; CELL nuclei; EUKARYOTIC cells; CELL cycle; MULTILEVEL models
- Publication
PLoS Computational Biology, 2024, Vol 20, Issue 2, p1
- ISSN
1553-734X
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1371/journal.pcbi.1011860