Hepatincolaceae (Alphaproteobacteria) are Distinct From Holosporales and Independently Evolved to Associate With Ecdysozoa.

ABSTRACT: The Hepatincolaceae (Alphaproteobacteria) are a group of bacteria that inhabit the gut of arthropods and other ecdysozoans, associating extracellularly with microvilli. Previous phylogenetic studies, primarily single-gene analyses, suggested their relationship to the Holosporales, which includes intracellular bacteria in protist hosts. However, the genomics of Hepatincolaceae is still in its early stages. In this study, the number of available Hepatincolaceae genomes was increased to examine their evolutionary and functional characteristics. It was found that the previous phylogenetic grouping with Holosporales was incorrect due to sequence compositional biases and that Hepatincolaceae form an independent branch within the Hepatincolaceae. This led to a reinterpretation of their features,

SUBMITTER: Castelli M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11724238 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature