Abstract
The genus Chlorella is a well-known member of the green algal class Trebouxiophyceae, which is characterized by an immotile and asexual life cycle. Here, we performed an analysis of the whole genome and transcriptome of Parachlorella kessleri NIES-2152 with emphasis on the evolution of meiosis and the flagellar proteins. The Parachlorella transcriptomic data showed that the MID-related RWP-RK genes and meiosis-specific and flagellar proteins were expressed; at the transcriptional level, the DNA repair protein RAD50 was upregulated in the stationary phase, with four-fold more reads per kilobase of transcript per million mapped reads (RPKM) compared with the early stage of culture. In contrast, radial spoke protein genes were down-regulated in the stationary phase. These results suggest that genes for meiotic and flagellar proteins are culture stage-dependent and retain their functions. We presume that the algae lost some of the genes for meiosis and the flagella during asexual evolution, but other genes still possess biological functions other than those related to the flagellum and meiosis.
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