Cited by 148Evolution and Paleontology StudiesMarine Invertebrate Physiology and EcologyProtist diversity and phylogeny

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 36 of the 36 references it cites were found in a registry or an index; none of the 19 sources its claims cite is checked for support yet.

Testing the Cambrian explosion hypothesis by using a molecular dating technique

Open access
Bromham, Lindell, Rambaut, Andrew, Fortey, Richard, Cooper, Alan, Penny, David·1998·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

Abstract

Molecular studies have the potential to shed light on the origin of the animal phyla by providing independent estimates of the divergence times, but have been criticized for failing to account adequately for variation in rate of evolution. A method of dating divergence times from molecular data addresses the criticisms of earlier studies and provides more realistic, but wider, confidence intervals. The data are not compatible with the Cambrian explosion hypothesis as an explanation for the origin of metazoan phyla, and provide additional support for an extended period of Precambrian metazoan diversification.

Overview

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TL;DR

Using a maximum-likelihood quartet dating method that tests rate constancy, the authors estimate that the echinoderm-vertebrate and protostome-deuterostome divergences are older than 680 Ma. They conclude the molecular data are incompatible with the Cambrian explosion hypothesis and support an extended period of Precambrian metazoan diversification.

Key findings

  • The majority of quartets were rejected by the rate-constancy test, implying widespread rate heterogeneity among metazoan taxa for these sequences.
  • Date estimates from quartets with no detectable rate variation were obtained for two nodes, the echinoderm-vertebrate split and the protostome-deuterostome split; all estimates are older than 680 Ma, excluding divergence at or near the base of the Cambrian.
  • Because sister taxa to the dated nodes, such as Brachiopoda, Porifera, and Cnidaria, must also have been present earlier, the authors infer these lineages existed before the Vendian (600 Ma) despite the lack of earlier fossils.
  • The authors reject the Cambrian explosion hypothesis and state their findings are in broad agreement with some earlier molecular studies.

Methods

  • Two data sets were used: protein-coding mitochondrial DNA from whole mitochondrial genome sequences (5,676 bp) and nuclear-encoded 18S rRNA (1,710 bp); sequences were aligned by eye and saturated or unconfidently aligned regions were removed.
  • Dated pairs were formed using fossil dates from the literature between 540 and 200 Ma, and quartets were formed from all possible combinations of monophyletic dated pairs. The maximum-likelihood quartet method used the HKY85 model with gamma-distributed rates across sites; for mitochondrial DNA the transition/transversion ratio was 1.21 and gamma shape parameter 0.38, and for 18S rRNA these were 1.74 and 0.38.
  • Rate constancy was tested by comparing rate-constrained and free-rate models; 1,000 sequence data sets were simulated per quartet with seq-gen, and a quartet was rejected if its observed log-likelihood difference exceeded that of 95% of simulations. Confidence intervals for divergence dates were obtained from the tZ value giving a log likelihood 1.92 below the maximum, based on a χ² distribution with 1 df at the 5% level.

Limitations

  • The paper states that uncertainty in phylogenetic reconstruction and the stochastic nature of the molecular clock preclude precise dating, that confidence intervals are wide, and that the results cannot put an absolute date on the origin of phyla; direct date estimates are provided for only two nodes.
  • The paper states that the branching order of phyla remains controversial and that the tree used is for illustrative purposes; it also notes that date estimates differ between the two sequence sets, possibly reflecting differences in model fit, and that rRNA paired-site evolution is not adequately modeled and may cause overestimation of divergence times.
  • Evident from the text: the conclusions depend on fossil calibration dates taken from the literature and on the subset of quartets that passed the rate-constancy test; the paper does not quantify uncertainty in those fossil calibration dates.

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Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1073/pnas.95.21.12386

Cites

36 of 36 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

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Citations

Cites

Show all 35 references

Research works printed but not linked: 3

  1. A Rambaut, N C Grassly Comput Appl Biosci 13, 235–238 (1997).
  2. W C Wheeler, R L Honeycutt Mol Biol Evol 5, 90–96 (1988).
  3. M T Dixon, D M Hillis Mol Biol Evol 10, 256–267 (1993).

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Metadata

Authors
Bromham, L., Rambaut, A., Fortey, R., Cooper, A., & Penny, D.
Affiliations
Natural History Museum (GB)
Venue
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Published
1998-10-13
Volume
95
Issue
21
Pages
12386-12389
ISSN
  • 0027-8424 (ISSN-L)
  • 1091-6490
OpenAlex
W2126267818
Cited by
148
References
35
Citations by year
2026: 1 · 2025: 2 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 3 · 2021: 1 · 2020: 1 · 2019: 1 · 2018: 4 · 2017: 1 · 2016: 1 · 2015: 1 · 2013: 5 · 2012: 3
FWCI
17.68
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Figshare (submittedVersion, cc-by)
  • Edinburgh Research Explorer (University of Edinburgh) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
Funders
Wellcome Trust
Topics
  • Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Paleontology › Evolution and Paleontology Studies
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Animal Science and Zoology › Marine Invertebrate Physiology and Ecology
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics › Protist diversity and phylogeny
Keywords
Cambrian explosion, divergence time estimation, metazoan origin, confidence intervals
MeSH terms
Animals, Biological Evolution, Models, Biological, RNA, Ribosomal, Confidence Intervals, Likelihood Functions

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