Genome and transcriptome of the regeneration-competent flatworm, Macrostomum lignano.

ABSTRACT: The free-living flatworm, Macrostomum lignano has an impressive regenerative capacity. Following injury, it can regenerate almost an entirely new organism because of the presence of an abundant somatic stem cell population, the neoblasts. This set of unique properties makes many flatworms attractive organisms for studying the evolution of pathways involved in tissue self-renewal, cell-fate specification, and regeneration. The use of these organisms as models, however, is hampered by the lack of a well-assembled and annotated genome sequences, fundamental to modern genetic and molecular studies. Here we report the genomic sequence of M. lignano and an accompanying characterization of its transcriptome. The genome structure of M. lignano is remarkably complex, with ∼75% of its sequence being

SUBMITTER: Wasik K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4603488 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature