Molecular fingerprints of cell size sensing and mating type differentiation in pennate diatoms.

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Main Authors: Belišová, Darja, Bilcke, Gust, Audoor, Sien, D'hondt, Sofie, De Veylder, Lieven, Vandepoele, Klaas, Vyverman, Wim
Format: Artículo científico
Language:en
Published: The New phytologist 2025
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author Belišová, Darja
Bilcke, Gust
Audoor, Sien
D'hondt, Sofie
De Veylder, Lieven
Vandepoele, Klaas
Vyverman, Wim
author_facet Belišová, Darja
Bilcke, Gust
Audoor, Sien
D'hondt, Sofie
De Veylder, Lieven
Vandepoele, Klaas
Vyverman, Wim
Belišová, Darja
Bilcke, Gust
Audoor, Sien
D'hondt, Sofie
De Veylder, Lieven
Vandepoele, Klaas
Vyverman, Wim
collection PubMed - marine biology
contents Molecular fingerprints of cell size sensing and mating type differentiation in pennate diatoms. Belišová, Darja Bilcke, Gust Audoor, Sien D'hondt, Sofie De Veylder, Lieven Vandepoele, Klaas Vyverman, Wim Diatoms Cell Size Cell Differentiation Transcriptome Reproduction Gene Expression Profiling Multigene Family A unique cell size-sensing mechanism is at the heart of the life cycle of diatoms. During population growth, cell size decreases until a sexual size threshold (SST) is reached, below which cells become sexually competent. In most pennate diatoms, the two mating types undergo biochemical and behavioral differentiation below the SST, although the molecular pathways underlying their size-dependent maturation remain unknown. Here, we developed a method to shorten the generation time of Cylindrotheca closterium through single-cell microsurgery, enabling the transcriptomic comparison of genetically identical large and undifferentiated cells with small, sexually competent cells for six different genotypes. We identified 21 genes upregulated in small cells regardless of their mating type, revealing how cells undergo specific transcriptional reprogramming when passing the SST. Furthermore, we revealed a size-regulated gene cluster with three mating type-specific genes susceptible to sex-inducing pheromones. In addition, comparative transcriptomics confirmed the shared mating type specificity of Mating-type Related Minus 2 homologs in three pennate diatoms, suggesting them to be part of a conserved partner recognition mechanism. This study sheds light on how diatoms acquire sexual competence in a strictly size-dependent manner, revealing a complex machinery underlying size-dependent maturation, mating behavior, and heterothally in pennate diatoms.
format Artículo científico
id pubmed_39648404
institution PubMed
language en
publishDate 2025
publisher The New phytologist
record_format pubmed
spellingShingle Molecular fingerprints of cell size sensing and mating type differentiation in pennate diatoms.
Belišová, Darja
Bilcke, Gust
Audoor, Sien
D'hondt, Sofie
De Veylder, Lieven
Vandepoele, Klaas
Vyverman, Wim
Diatoms
Cell Size
Cell Differentiation
Transcriptome
Reproduction
Gene Expression Profiling
Multigene Family
Molecular fingerprints of cell size sensing and mating type differentiation in pennate diatoms. Belišová, Darja Bilcke, Gust Audoor, Sien D'hondt, Sofie De Veylder, Lieven Vandepoele, Klaas Vyverman, Wim Diatoms Cell Size Cell Differentiation Transcriptome Reproduction Gene Expression Profiling Multigene Family A unique cell size-sensing mechanism is at the heart of the life cycle of diatoms. During population growth, cell size decreases until a sexual size threshold (SST) is reached, below which cells become sexually competent. In most pennate diatoms, the two mating types undergo biochemical and behavioral differentiation below the SST, although the molecular pathways underlying their size-dependent maturation remain unknown. Here, we developed a method to shorten the generation time of Cylindrotheca closterium through single-cell microsurgery, enabling the transcriptomic comparison of genetically identical large and undifferentiated cells with small, sexually competent cells for six different genotypes. We identified 21 genes upregulated in small cells regardless of their mating type, revealing how cells undergo specific transcriptional reprogramming when passing the SST. Furthermore, we revealed a size-regulated gene cluster with three mating type-specific genes susceptible to sex-inducing pheromones. In addition, comparative transcriptomics confirmed the shared mating type specificity of Mating-type Related Minus 2 homologs in three pennate diatoms, suggesting them to be part of a conserved partner recognition mechanism. This study sheds light on how diatoms acquire sexual competence in a strictly size-dependent manner, revealing a complex machinery underlying size-dependent maturation, mating behavior, and heterothally in pennate diatoms.
title Molecular fingerprints of cell size sensing and mating type differentiation in pennate diatoms.
topic Diatoms
Cell Size
Cell Differentiation
Transcriptome
Reproduction
Gene Expression Profiling
Multigene Family
url https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39648404/