A single enzyme becomes a Swiss Army knife

by Andreas Sichert An alga that abandoned photosynthesis? This Primer explores a PLOS Biology study showing that a single horizontal gene transfer event allowed the diatom Nitzschia sing1 to evolve a complete enzymatic machinery to break down alginate from brown algae, unlocking a new ecological niche.

Apr 2, 2025 - 18:39
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A single enzyme becomes a Swiss Army knife

by Andreas Sichert An alga that abandoned photosynthesis? This Primer explores a PLOS Biology study showing that a single horizontal gene transfer event allowed the diatom Nitzschia sing1 to evolve a complete enzymatic machinery to break down alginate from brown algae, unlocking a new ecological niche.