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Project Progress

This is a new project on the poorly-studied animal phylum Placozoa, which contains only a single described species Trichoplax adhaerens. This is perhaps the simplest free-living animal known, in terms of total described cell types (4), small genome size (50 Mbp) and lack of organs, tissues, obvious sensory systems, or symmetry. The phylogenetic placement of placozoans amongst the other basal metazoan lineages is controversial but a recent study of the mitochrondrial genomes places it below sponges and the most deeply branching lineage of animals. The nuclear genome of this organism is being sequenced and this data should open up many avenues of investigation regarding the emergence of multicellular life, the origin of the nervous system, and the diversification of animals. Initial UHNAI funding has supported an undergraduate thesis on a mathematical characterization of the motile behavior of this organism, and a one-year Director’s Discretionary Fund supplemental award will support a graduate student and an undergraduate assistant.

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