Respiratory protein-driven selectivity during the Permian-Triassic mass extinction.

ABSTRACT: Extinction selectivity determines the direction of macroevolution, especially during mass extinction; however, its driving mechanisms remain poorly understood. By investigating the physiological selectivity of marine animals during the Permian-Triassic mass extinction, we found that marine clades with lower O₂-carrying capacity hemerythrin proteins and those relying on O₂ diffusion experienced significantly greater extinction intensity and body-size reduction than those with higher O₂-carrying capacity hemoglobin or hemocyanin proteins. Our findings suggest that animals with high O₂-carrying capacity obtained the necessary O₂ even under hypoxia and compensated for the increased energy requirements caused by ocean acidification, which enabled their survival during the Permian-Triassic mass extinction. Thus, high O₂-carrying capacity may have been crucial for the transition from the Paleozoic to the Modern Evolutionary Fauna.

SUBMITTER: Song H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11025005 | biostudies-literature | 2024 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature