Our newest lab paper was published today. This manuscript describes two important discoveries in diatom lifecycles.
PLoS ONE 12(7): e0181098. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0181098
1.) Thalassiosira pseudonana IS a sexual diatom species
2.) Ammonium induces sex in T. pseudonana and at least two other centric diatoms.
To prove these discoveries, Eric Moore with help from Briana Bullington carried out a number of carefully controlled culturing experiments, imaged all of the cell morphologies in the lifecycle, and identified >1,200 genes that were differentially expressed under conditions of ammonium induced cell differentiation. Some of these genes are involved in meiosis, flagellar synthesis, and sex differentiation.
Thanks to all of our co-authors, Alex Weisberg, Jeff Chang, and Yuan Jiang for their help with gene expression analysis and statistical testing.