The organellar genomes of Silvetia siliquosa (Fucales, Phaeophyceae) and comparative analyses of the brown algae

PLoS One. 2022 Jun 16;17(6):e0269631. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0269631. eCollection 2022.

Abstract

The brown alga Silvetia siliquosa (Tseng et Chang) Serrão, Cho, Boo & Brawly is endemic to the Yellow-Bohai Sea and southwestern Korea. It is increasingly endangered due to habitat loss and excessive collection. Here, we sequenced the mitochondrial (mt) and chloroplast (cp) genomes of S. siliquosa. De novo assembly showed that the mt-genome was 36,036 bp in length, including 38 protein-coding genes (PCGs), 26 tRNAs, and 3 rRNAs, and the cp-genome was 124,991 bp in length, containing 139 PCGs, 28 tRNAs, and 6 rRNAs. Gene composition, gene number, and gene order of the mt-genome and cp-genome were very similar to those of other species in Fucales. Phylogenetic analysis revealed a close genetic relationship between S. siliquosa and F. vesiculosus, which diverged approximately 8 Mya (5.7-11.0 Mya), corresponding to the Late Miocene (5.3-11.6 Ma). The synonymous substitution rate of mitochondrial genes of phaeophycean species was 1.4 times higher than that of chloroplast genes, but the cp-genomes were more structurally variable than the mt-genomes, with numerous gene losses and rearrangements among the different orders in Phaeophyceae. This study reports the mt- and cp-genomes of the endangered S. siliquosa and improves our understanding of its phylogenetic position in Phaeophyceae and of organellar genomic evolution in brown algae.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Gene Order
  • Genome, Chloroplast*
  • Genome, Mitochondrial* / genetics
  • Phaeophyceae* / genetics
  • Phylogeny

Grants and funding

This research was supported by the Strategic Priority Research Program of Chinese Academy of Sciences (XDB42030203, XDB42040106, XDA19060102) (received by DD) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 31971395, 41761144057) (received by Z-MH).