In dinoflagellates, a unique and extremely divergent genomic and nuclear organization has evolved. The highly unusual features of dinoflagellate nuclei and genomes include permanently condensed liquid crystalline chromosomes, primarily packaged by proteins other than histones, genes organized in very long unidirectional gene arrays, a general absence of transcriptional regulation, high abundance of the otherwise very rare DNA modification 5-hydroxymethyluracil (5-hmU), and many others. While most of these fascinating properties were originally identified in the 1970s and 1980s, they have not yet been investigated using modern genomic tools. In this work, we address some of the outstanding questions regarding dinoflagellate genome organization by mapping the genome-wide distribution of 5-hmU (using both immunoprecipitation-based and basepair-resolution chemical mapping approaches) and of chromatin accessibility in the genome of the Symbiodiniaceae dinoflagellate Breviolum minutum. We find that the 5-hmU modification is preferentially enriched over certain classes of repetitive elements, often coincides with the boundaries between gene arrays, and is generally correlated with decreased chromatin accessibility, the latter otherwise being largely uniform along the genome. We discuss the potential roles of 5-hmU in the functional organization of dinoflagellate genomes and its relationship to the transcriptional landscape of gene arrays.

Bacterial species often undergo rampant recombination yet maintain cohesive genomic identity. Ecological differences can generate recombination barriers between species and sustain genomic clusters in the short term. But can these forces prevent genomic mixing during long-term coevolution? Cyanobacteria in Yellowstone hot springs comprise several diverse species that have coevolved for hundreds of thousands of years, providing a rare natural experiment. By analyzing more than 300 single-cell genomes, we show that despite each species forming a distinct genomic cluster, much of the diversity within species is the result of hybridization driven by selection, which has mixed their ancestral genotypes. This widespread mixing is contrary to the prevailing view that ecological barriers can maintain cohesive bacterial species and highlights the importance of hybridization as a source of genomic diversity.

Since the first half of the twentieth century, evolutionary theory has been dominated by the idea that mutations occur randomly with respect to their consequences1. Here we test this assumption with large surveys of de novo mutations in the plant Arabidopsis thaliana. In contrast to expectations, we find that mutations occur less often in functionally constrained regions of the genome-mutation frequency is reduced by half inside gene bodies and by two-thirds in essential genes. With independent genomic mutation datasets, including from the largest Arabidopsis mutation accumulation experiment conducted to date, we demonstrate that epigenomic and physical features explain over 90% of variance in the genome-wide pattern of mutation bias surrounding genes. Observed mutation frequencies around genes in turn accurately predict patterns of genetic polymorphisms in natural Arabidopsis accessions (r=0.96). That mutation bias is the primary force behind patterns of sequence evolution around genes in natural accessions is supported by analyses of allele frequencies. Finally, we find that genes subject to stronger purifying selection have a lower mutation rate. We conclude that epigenome-associated mutation bias2 reduces the occurrence of deleterious mutations in Arabidopsis, challenging the prevailing paradigm that mutation is a directionless force in evolution.

Aim: Native biodiversity is threatened by the spread of non-native invasive species. Many studies demonstrate that invasions reduce local biodiversity but we lack an understanding of how impacts vary across environments at the macroscale. Using similar to 11,500 vegetation surveys from ecosystems across the United States, we quantified how the relationship between non-native plant cover and native plant diversity varied across different compositions of invading plants (measured by non-native plant richness and evenness) and environmental contexts (measured by productivity and human activity).

The detections of four apparently young radio pulsars in the Milky Way globular clusters are difficult to reconcile with standard neutron star formation scenarios associated with massive star evolution. Here, we discuss formation of these young pulsars through white dwarf mergers in dynamically old clusters that have undergone core collapse. Based on observed properties of magnetic white dwarfs, we argue neutron stars formed via white dwarf merger are born with spin periods of roughly 10-100 ms and magnetic fields of roughly 10(11) -10(13) G. As these neutron stars spin down via magnetic dipole radiation, they naturally reproduce the four observed young pulsars in the Milky Way clusters. Rates inferred from N-body cluster simulations as well as the binarity, host cluster properties, and cluster offsets observed for these young pulsars hint further at a white dwarf merger origin. These young pulsars may be descendants of neutron stars capable of powering fast radio bursts analogous to the bursts observed recently in a globular cluster in M81.

The Takab-Delijan (T-D) magmatic belt in NW Iran is a part of the Zagros orogenic belt which has imminence with epithermal, porphyry and carlin types of mineralization. This magmatic belt has been classified into 3 different phases by radiometric dating, including early (16-24 Ma), middle-late (10-12 Ma), and late Miocene (8 > Ma), among which the gold/basemetal mineralization is related to the first two phases in this area. The lower Miocene phase formed during the formation of a metamorphic core complex and upwelling basement in the form of synextentional magmatism. This magmatic event is shaped in an extensional regime within shallow marine basins which are correlated with the limestone formation of Qom Formation (QF) in a pre- to syncollisional environment. This volcanism (edifice) acceded to the surface rapidly via NW extensional faults and made stratovolcanic structures in the Takab and Delijan areas. These complexes have been formed by sequences of pyroclastic and lava flows with a composition of dacite to andesite and trachyandesite that are crosscut by microdiorite porphyritic subvolcanic. These epithermal-porphyr systems are related to the Cu +/- Au +/- Ag deposits. The main phase of gold mineralization is related to the magmatic phase with middle-late Miocene and the age of similar to 10.7-12 Ma. The geological environment for forming this magmatic phase is related to the extensionalcompressional regime by the right-lateral strike-slip shear zone during shortening, folding, and thickening in synto post-collisional events. The magmatism is in the form of dacitic to rhyolitic domes on the surface. The gold/ silver mineralization is associated with the hydrothermal metal suite of As, Sb, Te, Pb, and Zn, and it is characterized by very low Cu contents of subvolcanic. The final stage of tectonic evolution events is the thrusting of prior normal faults and exhumation in the late Miocene-Pliocene age which is together with post-collision magmatism.

We present CI(2-1) and multi-transition (CO)-C-12 observations of a dusty star-forming galaxy, ACT J2029+0120, which we spectroscopically confirm to lie at z = 2.64. We detect CO(3-2), CO(5-4), CO(7-6), CO(8-7), and CI (2-1) at high significance, tentatively detect HCO+(4-3), and place strong upper limits on the integrated strength of dense gas tracers (HCN(4-3) and CS(7-6)). Multi-transition CO observations and dense gas tracers can provide valuable constraints on the molecular gas content and excitation conditions in high-redshift galaxies. We therefore use this unique data set to construct a CO spectral line energy distribution (SLED) of the source, which is most consistent with that of a ULIRG/Seyfert or QSO host object in the taxonomy of the Herschel Comprehensive ULIRG Emission Survey. We employ RADEX models to fit the peak of the CO SLED, inferring a temperature of T similar to 117 K and n(H2) similar to 10(5) cm(-3), most consistent with a ULIRG/QSO object and the presence of high-density tracers. We also find that the velocity width of the C I line is potentially larger than seen in all CO transitions for this object, and that the L'(Ci(2-1))/L'(CO(3-2)) ratio is also larger than seen in other lensed and unlensed submillimeter galaxies and QSO hosts; if confirmed, this anomaly could be an effect of differential lensing of a shocked molecular outflow.