Miller D J, Harrison P
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, James Cook University of North Queensland.
Aust J Biotechnol. 1990 Oct;4(4):241-5, 250.
Cnidarians are generally considered to be the most primitive group of eumetazoans. They are therefore of considerable interest for comparative studies of metazoan development and evolution. The application of molecular techniques to cnidarians can provide important insights into developmental processes and phylogenetic relationships both within the phylum Cnidaria and among the eumetazoa. This paper reviews current knowledge of molecular and developmental biology of cinidarians with particular emphasis on tropical scleractinian corals and soft corals from the Great Barrier Reef region. Nucleotide sequencing of the histone gene cluster has unequivocally established that cnidarians are typical eumetazoans. Repeated sequence analysis has been applied to the staghorn corals, and implies a major divergence within this group, which corresponds with differences in sperm ultrastructure. Recent developmental studies of corals have indicated that some species have an unusual method of germ layer formation. Molecular events associated with this process, and with other important developmental stages, are currently under investigation. Other areas of current research interest, including targets for PCR-based investigations into cnidarian phylogeny, are highlighted.
刺胞动物通常被认为是最原始的真后生动物类群。因此，它们对于后生动物发育和进化的比较研究具有相当重要的意义。将分子技术应用于刺胞动物，可以为刺胞动物门内部以及真后生动物之间的发育过程和系统发育关系提供重要的见解。本文综述了刺胞动物分子生物学和发育生物学的现有知识，特别强调了来自大堡礁地区的热带石珊瑚和软珊瑚。组蛋白基因簇的核苷酸测序已明确证实刺胞动物是典型的真后生动物。重复序列分析已应用于鹿角珊瑚，这表明该类群内部存在重大分歧，这与精子超微结构的差异相对应。最近对珊瑚的发育研究表明，一些物种具有一种不寻常的胚层形成方式。目前正在研究与这一过程以及其他重要发育阶段相关的分子事件。本文还强调了当前研究感兴趣的其他领域，包括基于PCR的刺胞动物系统发育研究的目标。
