Rapid diversification underlying the global dominance of a cosmopolitan phytoplankton.

ABSTRACT: Marine phytoplankton play important roles in the global ecosystem, with a limited number of cosmopolitan keystone species driving their biomass. Recent studies have revealed that many of these phytoplankton are complexes composed of sibling species, but little is known about the evolutionary processes underlying their formation. Gephyrocapsa huxleyi, a widely distributed and abundant unicellular marine planktonic algae, produces calcified scales (coccoliths), thereby significantly affects global biogeochemical cycles via sequestration of inorganic carbon. This species is composed of morphotypes defined by differing degrees of coccolith calcification, the evolutionary ecology of which remains unclear. Here, we report an integrated morphological, ecological and genomic survey across globally

SUBMITTER: Bendif EM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10030636 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature