Where's the sex and what's a species? Evolution and population genetics of the enigmatic red algae: Classes bangiophyceae, compsopogonophyceae & Stylonematophyceae

红藻(红藻)是一个古老的谱系，早在12亿年前的化石记录中就报告了一些成员。这一组具有相当重要的经济意义，因为它们含有化合物(琼脂、卡拉胶等)。它们被广泛用作酸奶、冰淇淋和牙膏等产品的增稠剂。紫菜属(又名：紫菜属)。Nori，紫菜面包)和Palmaria(又名。Dulse)是重要的食物来源，是全球价值数十亿美元的水产养殖业。此外，红藻通过叶绿体的次生内共生作用在地球上光合作用生命的进化过程中是一个关键的类群。这仅仅意味着，目前几个具有光合作用能力的谱系已经通过吞噬并将其他光合作用有机体保持在它们内部而获得了这种能力。例如，红藻是异形藻(Heterokontophyta)中所含叶绿体的共同祖先(例如大西洋和太平洋沿岸常见的大海藻)。这是光合作用生命进化的关键事件。尽管这一类群具有明显的重要性，但人们对被认为是“邦吉植物”的物种知之甚少。更令人着迷的是，尽管班吉奥玛化石展示了化石记录中第一个有性繁殖的例子(1.2bya)，但这些群体中的许多似乎没有进行有性繁殖，或者完全失去了这种能力。这项提议的重点是研究这些独特的有机体，并使用分子技术来辨别种群中是否发生了有性繁殖。此外，在这一独特的群体中，确定一个物种是什么(在许多方面仍然是一个具有挑战性的概念)。这项研究将为当前的基因组测序项目提供基础。事实上，尽管分子和基因组生物学取得了长足的进步，但从进化、生态学和生物学的角度对这些有趣的群体进行额外的研究，只会加强对未来基因组的解释。

The red algae (Rhodophyta) are an ancient lineage with some members being reported in the fossil record as far back as 1.2 billion years. This group is of considerable economic importance since they contain compounds (agar, carrageenan, etc.) that are used extensively as thickeners in products such as yogurt, ice cream and toothpaste. Genera such as Porphyra (aka. Nori, laverbread) and Palmaria (aka. Dulse) are important food sources and are global billion dollar aquaculture industries. In addition, the red algae are a critical group in the evolution of photosynthetic life on earth through secondary endosymbiosis of chloroplasts. This simply means that several lineages currently capable of photosynthesis have gained that ability by engulfing and keeping other photosynthetic organisms inside them. For example, red algae are the common ancestors to the chloroplasts contained in the division, Heterokontophyta (e.g. large kelps common to Atlantic and Pacific coasts). This was a pivotal event in the evolution of photosynthetic life. Despite the obvious importance of this group, very little is known about what are considered "Bangiophyte" species. Even more fascinating is that even though the fossil, Bangiomorpha, exhibits the first example of sexual reproduction in the fossil record (1.2 BYA), many of these groups do not appear to undergo sexual reproduction or have lost the ability entirely. This proposal focuses on examining these unique organisms and uses molecular techniques to discern if sexual reproduction is or is not occurring within populations. In addition, determination of what a species is (still a challenging concept in many respects) in this unique group. This research will provide a foundation for current genome sequencing projects. In fact, despite considerable advancements in molecular and genomic biology, additional research on these interesting groups in terms of evolution, ecology and biology can only enhance the interpretation of future genomes.