The Colours of<i>Ophiocomina Nigra</i>(Abildgaard): II. The Occurrence of Melanin and Fluorescent Pigments

Fontaine, A. R.

doi:10.1017/s0025315400004434

Cited by 18 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…In crustaceans, pterin-based pigmentation has been confirmed in several groups [44,[48][49][50] (figure 1e), while in arachnids they have yet to be isolated ( [51], but indirect evidence from microscopy [52] and transcriptomics [53] is known). In non-arthropod invertebrates, pterins are also likely to contribute to pigmentation in brittle stars [54]. Some instances of pterin-based pigmentation in insects are worth singling out.…”

Section: Pterins As Animal Pigmentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pterin-based pigmentation in animals

Andrade

Carneiro

2021

Biol. Lett.

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Pterins are one of the major sources of bright coloration in animals. They are produced endogenously, participate in vital physiological processes and serve a variety of signalling functions. Despite their ubiquity in nature, pterin-based pigmentation has received little attention when compared to other major pigment classes. Here, we summarize major aspects relating to pterin pigmentation in animals, from its long history of research to recent genomic studies on the molecular mechanisms underlying its evolution. We argue that pterins have intermediate characteristics (endogenously produced, typically bright) between two well-studied pigment types, melanins (endogenously produced, typically cryptic) and carotenoids (dietary uptake, typically bright), providing unique opportunities to address general questions about the biology of coloration, from the mechanisms that determine how different types of pigmentation evolve to discussions on honest signalling hypotheses. Crucial gaps persist in our knowledge on the molecular basis underlying the production and deposition of pterins. We thus highlight the need for functional studies on systems amenable for laboratory manipulation, but also on systems that exhibit natural variation in pterin pigmentation. The wealth of potential model species, coupled with recent technological and analytical advances, make this a promising time to advance research on pterin-based pigmentation in animals.

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Section: Pterins As Animal Pigmentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pterin-based pigmentation in animals

Andrade

Carneiro

2021

Biol. Lett.

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“…Pigment identity is unknown, but light-responsive chromatophores in Diadema antillarum and pigment cells in Ophiocomina nigra contain melanin [34,35]. Melanin has a broad-spectrum absorption profile and absorbs strongly in shorter wavelengths, including in O. nigra [35]. We measured only direct incident light, excluding possible transmission through the densely packed pigment.…”

Section: The Photoreceptor Systemmentioning

confidence: 99%

Extraocular Vision in a Brittle Star Is Mediated by Chromatophore Movement in Response to Ambient Light

et al. 2020

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“…Pateria miniata. Melanins are synthesized by an animal through polymerization of oxidized tyrosine, but are sporadically found only in some echinoderms 4 . Porphyrins also are present sporadically in echinoderms but their origin in the animal is not yet clear.…”

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confidence: 99%

Genetic manipulation of the pigment pathway in a sea urchin reveals distinct lineage commitment prior to metamorphosis in the bilateral to radial body plan transition

Wessel

Kiyomoto

Shen

et al. 2020

Sci Rep

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echinoderms display a vast array of pigmentation and patterning in larval and adult life stages. this coloration is thought to be important for immune defense and camouflage. However, neither the cellular nor molecular mechanism that regulates this complex coloration in the adult is known. Here we knocked out three different genes thought to be involved in the pigmentation pathway(s) of larvae and grew the embryos to adulthood. The genes tested were polyketide synthase (PKS), Flavindependent monooxygenase family 3 (FMO3) and glial cells missing (GCM). We found that disabling of the pKS gene at fertilization resulted in albinism throughout all life stages and throughout all cells and tissues of this animal, including the immune cells of the coelomocytes. We also learned that FMO3 is an essential modifier of the polyketide. FMO3 activity is essential for larval pigmentation, but in juveniles and adults, loss of FMO3 activity resulted in the animal becoming pastel purple. Linking the LC-MS analysis of this modified pigment to a naturally purple animal suggested a conserved echinochrome profile yielding a pastel purple. We interpret this result as FMO3 modifies the parent polyketide to contribute to the normal brown/green color of the animal, and that in its absence, other biochemical modifications are revealed, perhaps by other members of the large FMO family in this animal. The fMo modularity revealed here may be important in the evolutionary changes between species and for different immune challenges. We also learned that glial cells missing (GCM), a key transcription factor of the endomesoderm gene regulatory network of embryos in the sea urchin, is required for pigmentation throughout the life stages of this sea urchin, but surprisingly, is not essential for larval development, metamorphosis, or maintenance of adulthood. Mosaic knockout of either PKS or GCM revealed spatial lineage commitment in the transition from bilaterality of the larva to a pentaradial body plan of the adult. The cellular lineages identified by pigment presence or absence (wild-type or knockout lineages, respectively) followed a strict oral/aboral profile. No circumferential segments were seen and instead we observed 10-fold symmetry in the segments of pigment expression. This suggests that the adult lineage commitments in the five outgrowths of the hydropore in the larva are early, complete, fixed, and each bilaterally symmetric. Overall, these results suggest that pigmentation of this animal is genetically determined and dependent on a population of pigment stem cells that are set-aside in a subregion of each outgrowth of the pentaradial adult rudiment prior to metamorphosis. this study reveals the complex chemistry of pigment applicable to many organisms, and further, provides an insight into the key transitions from bilateral to pentaradial body plans unique to echinoderms.

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The Colours ofOphiocomina Nigra(Abildgaard): II. The Occurrence of Melanin and Fluorescent Pigments

Cited by 18 publications

References 25 publications

Pterin-based pigmentation in animals

Pterin-based pigmentation in animals

Extraocular Vision in a Brittle Star Is Mediated by Chromatophore Movement in Response to Ambient Light

Genetic manipulation of the pigment pathway in a sea urchin reveals distinct lineage commitment prior to metamorphosis in the bilateral to radial body plan transition

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