Phagotrophy in the origins of photosynthesis in eukaryotes and as a complementary mode of nutrition in phototrophs: relation to Darwin's insectivorous plants

Raven, John A.; Beardall, John; Flynn, Kevin J.; Maberly, Stephen C. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3541-5903. 2009 Phagotrophy in the origins of photosynthesis in eukaryotes and as a complementary mode of nutrition in phototrophs: relation to Darwin's insectivorous plants. Journal of Experimental Botany, 60 (14). 3975-3987. https://doi.org/10.1093/jxb/erp282

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Official URL: http://jxb.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract...

Abstract/Summary

Darwin performed innovative observational and experimental work on the apparently paradoxical occurrence of carnivory in photosynthetic flowering plants. The nutritional use of particulate organic material which also supplies other elements is now known to be widespread in free-living algae as well as in organisms with endosymbiotic algae and with kleptoplastids. In addition to this direct nutritional role, phagotrophy, in the broad sense of internalisation of photosynthetic organisms by a eukaryote, is essential for the occurrence of present-day endosymbiotic algae and kleptoplastid containing protists, and was essential for the origin of plastids themselves. The endosymbiotic phenomena involving photosynthetic organisms clearly played a major role in combining genomes providing different metabolic functions, but, in our opinion, does not demand a re-appraisal of evolution by natural selection. That the balance of physiological optimisation for competition for resources and minimization of losses (e.g., through predation) is a fine one, and thus subject to a complex selective process, is illustrated by the diversity of mixotrophic strategies in extant phytoplankton.

Item Type:	Publication - Article
Digital Object Identifier (DOI):	https://doi.org/10.1093/jxb/erp282
Programmes:	CEH Topics & Objectives 2009 - 2012 > Water > WA Topic 2 - Ecohydrological Processes > WA - 2.3 - Assess the responses of river, lake and wetland ecosystems to ecohydrological drivers
UKCEH and CEH Sections/Science Areas:	Parr
ISSN:	0022-0957
Additional Keywords:	Carnivorous plants, Darwin, endosymbiosis, gene transfer to nucleus, kleptoplasty, mixotrophy, oxygenic photosynthesis, phytoplankton, plastids
NORA Subject Terms:	Botany
Related URLs:	Author's Homepage
Date made live:	02 Nov 2009 16:16 +0 (UTC)
URI:	https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/7750

Item Type:

Publication - Article

Digital Object Identifier (DOI):

https://doi.org/10.1093/jxb/erp282

Programmes:

CEH Topics & Objectives 2009 - 2012 > Water > WA Topic 2 - Ecohydrological Processes > WA - 2.3 - Assess the responses of river, lake and wetland ecosystems to ecohydrological drivers

UKCEH and CEH Sections/Science Areas:

Parr

ISSN:

0022-0957

Additional Keywords:

Carnivorous plants, Darwin, endosymbiosis, gene transfer to nucleus, kleptoplasty, mixotrophy, oxygenic photosynthesis, phytoplankton, plastids