Meeting Abstract
Ctenophores have increasingly become a critical taxon for investigating the molecular underpinnings of metazoan evolution and development. Most ctenophore species are self-fertile hermaphrodites and possess transparent embryos with rapid embryogenesis making them an attractive model system for developmental biology. Ctenophores have also proved useful for exploring the early evolution of animal multicellularity. For example, it has been shown that ctenophores possess nerve cells, ectoderm and endodermal germ layers, and well defined muscle cells. Considering recent molecular evidence supporting ctenophores as one of the earliest branching extant metazoan lineages, the combination of these features are striking. Yet to be answered are questions regarding the evolution of this collection of traits typically associated with later diverging lineages composed of ‘complex’ metazoans. Were these features independently acquired in the ctenophore lineage, or were they present very early in the metazoan stem lineage and subsequently lost in other basally branching metazoan lineages? Investigation of these questions demands a thorough understanding of the unique life-history and ecology of ctenophores. We have developed robust resources for maintaining Mnemiopsis in culture generation over generation for mechanistic, morphological and functional genetic studies. Here, we present a continuous culturing system for the lobate ctenophore Mnemiopsis and describe stages of post hatching metamorphosis. Continuous culture opens up significant opportunities for labs without direct access to wild populations to work on these animals year round and facilitates the creation of stable transgenic lines and design of genetic-based experiments that span multiple generations.
