Functional Characterization of Luciferase in a Brittle Star Indicates Parallel Evolution Influenced by Genomic Availability of Haloalkane Dehalogenase.

ABSTRACT: Determining why convergent traits use distinct versus shared genetic components is crucial for understanding how evolutionary processes generate and sustain biodiversity. However, the factors dictating the genetic underpinnings of convergent traits remain incompletely understood. Here, we use heterologous protein expression, biochemical assays, and phylogenetic analyses to confirm the origin of a luciferase gene from haloalkane dehalogenases in the brittle star Amphiura filiformis. Through database searches and gene tree analyses, we also show a complex pattern of the presence and absence of haloalkane dehalogenases across organismal genomes. These results first confirm parallel evolution across a vast phylogenetic distance, because octocorals like Renilla also use luciferase derived from

SUBMITTER: Lau ES 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12059646 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature