TY - JOUR
T1 - The Pristionchus pacificus genome provides a unique perspective on nematode lifestyle and parasitism
AU - Dieterich, Christoph
AU - Clifton, Sandra W.
AU - Schuster, Lisa N.
AU - Chinwalla, Asif
AU - Delehaunty, Kimberly
AU - Dinkelacker, Iris
AU - Fulton, Lucinda
AU - Fulton, Robert
AU - Godfrey, Jennifer
AU - Minx, Pat
AU - Mitreva, Makedonka
AU - Roeseler, Waltraud
AU - Tian, Huiyu
AU - Witte, Hanh
AU - Yang, Shiaw Pyng
AU - Wilson, Richard K.
AU - Sommer, Ralf J.
N1 - Funding Information:
We thank P.W. Sternberg, J. Srinivasan and members of the Sommer lab for discussion and helpful comments on the manuscript. This work was funded by National Human Genome Research Institute grant U54HG003079 and the Max-Planck Society.
PY - 2008/10
Y1 - 2008/10
N2 - Here we present a draft genome sequence of the nematode Pristionchus pacificus, a species that is associated with beetles and is used as a model system in evolutionary biology. With 169 Mb and 23,500 predicted protein-coding genes, the P. pacificus genome is larger than those of Caenorhabditis elegans and the human parasite Brugia malayi. Compared to C. elegans, the P. pacificus genome has more genes encoding cytochrome P450 enzymes, glucosyltransferases, sulfotransferases and ABC transporters, many of which were experimentally validated. The P. pacificus genome contains genes encoding cellulase and diapausin, and cellulase activity is found in P. pacificus secretions, indicating that cellulases can be found in nematodes beyond plant parasites. The relatively higher number of detoxification and degradation enzymes in P. pacificus is consistent with its necromenic lifestyle and might represent a preadaptation for parasitism. Thus, comparative genomics analysis of three ecologically distinct nematodes offers a unique opportunity to investigate the association between genome structure and lifestyle.
AB - Here we present a draft genome sequence of the nematode Pristionchus pacificus, a species that is associated with beetles and is used as a model system in evolutionary biology. With 169 Mb and 23,500 predicted protein-coding genes, the P. pacificus genome is larger than those of Caenorhabditis elegans and the human parasite Brugia malayi. Compared to C. elegans, the P. pacificus genome has more genes encoding cytochrome P450 enzymes, glucosyltransferases, sulfotransferases and ABC transporters, many of which were experimentally validated. The P. pacificus genome contains genes encoding cellulase and diapausin, and cellulase activity is found in P. pacificus secretions, indicating that cellulases can be found in nematodes beyond plant parasites. The relatively higher number of detoxification and degradation enzymes in P. pacificus is consistent with its necromenic lifestyle and might represent a preadaptation for parasitism. Thus, comparative genomics analysis of three ecologically distinct nematodes offers a unique opportunity to investigate the association between genome structure and lifestyle.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=52949136971&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1038/ng.227
DO - 10.1038/ng.227
M3 - Article
C2 - 18806794
AN - SCOPUS:52949136971
SN - 1061-4036
VL - 40
SP - 1193
EP - 1198
JO - Nature Genetics
JF - Nature Genetics
IS - 10
ER -