Ecological forces driving the loss of photosynthesis in phytoplankton: Molecular and morphological adaptations to heterotrophy

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The differentiation of nutritional strategies (phototrophic, mixotrophic, phagotrophic) is one of the most obvious functional differences among organisms and strongly influences the carbon and element flows. All major algal lineages comprise numerous examples of "colourless algae". We address the molecular and morphological adaptations to heterotrophy using chrysophytes as model organisms to conclude on ecological causes of the loss of phototrophic abilities. We will further test the competitive strength of heterotrophic and mixotrophix chrysophytes under different conditions in a series of laboratory experiments. The project brings together the expertise of working groups covering algal diversity and phylogeny, ultrastructure and cell biology, and genome and transcriptome analyses with special reference to the evolution of photopigments. It is further independent but closely linked to a proposal submitted in parallel by U. Gaedke. It will provide basic insights into the scenarios behind the (multifold) separation into phototrophic and heterotrophic lineages and elucidate environmental conditions favouring this differentiation.