Phylogeny of Syndermata (syn. Rotifera): Mitochondrial gene order verifies epizoic Seisonidea as sister to endoparasitic Acanthocephala within monophyletic Hemirotifera
Abstract
Mt genome analyses clarify the phylogenetic relations of thorny-headed worms (Acanthocephala) and wheel animals (Rotifera). Mt gene order supports monophyletic Pararotatoria (Seisonidea+Acanthocephala) within Hemirotifera (Bdelloidea+Pararotatoria). The topology is robust to alternative encodings of gene order (genes/adjacencies, two-state/multistate, aligned/non-aligned). Endoparasitic Acanthocephala probably evolved from free-living states via an epizoic state as retained by extant Seisonidea. Mt sequence analyses (rDNAs and proteins) suffered from saturation, compositional, and branch length heterogeneity.
- Publication:
-
Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution
- Pub Date:
- March 2016
- DOI:
- 10.1016/j.ympev.2015.11.017
- Bibcode:
- 2016MolPE..96...79S
- Keywords:
-
- Gene order;
- Gene rearrangements;
- Adjacencies;
- Parasitism;
- Eurotatoria;
- Life cycle