A dramatic life history switch that has evolved numerous times in marine invertebrates is the transition from planktotrophic (feeding) to lecithotrophic (nonfeeding) larval development—an evolutionary tradeoff with many important developmental and ecological consequences. To attain a more comprehensive understanding of the molecular basis for this switch, we performed untargeted lipidomic and proteomic liquid chromatography‐tandem mass spectrometry on eggs and larvae from three sea urchin species: the lecithotroph Heliocidaris erythrogramma, the closely related planktotroph Heliocidaris tuberculata, and the distantly related planktotroph Lytechinus variegatus. We identify numerous molecular‐level changes possibly associated with the evolution of lecithotrophy in H. erythrogramma. We find the massive lipid stores of H. erythrogramma eggs are largely composed of low‐density, diacylglycerol ether lipids that, contrary to expectations, appear to support postmetamorphic development and survivorship. Rapid premetamorphic development in this species may instead be powered by upregulated carbohydrate metabolism or triacylglycerol metabolism. We also find proteins involved in oxidative stress regulation are upregulated in H. erythrogramma eggs, and apoB‐like lipid transfer proteins may be important for echinoid oogenic nutrient provisioning. These results demonstrate how mass spectrometry can enrich our understanding of life history evolution and organismal diversity by identifying specific molecules associated with distinct life history strategies and prompt new hypotheses about how and why these adaptations evolve.

中文翻译：

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在海胆的生活史快速演变过程中，使用质谱对鸡蛋供应的比较分析。

在海洋无脊椎动物中，经历了无数次进化的戏剧性生命史转换是从浮生（摄食）到瘦营养（非摄食）幼体发育的过渡，这是一种进化折衷，具有许多重要的发展和生态后果。为了更全面地了解这种转换的分子基础，我们对三种海胆物种的卵和幼虫进行了针对性的脂质组学和蛋白质组液相色谱-串联质谱分析：卵形营养菌Heliocidaris erythrogramma，紧密相关的浮游微生物Heliocidaris tuberculata和远缘浮游植物Lytechinus variegatus。我们找出可能与lecithotrophy在进化相关的众多分子水平的变化H. erythrogramma。我们发现，红血球菌卵的大量脂质储藏物主要由低密度的二酰基甘油醚脂质组成，与预期相反，这些脂质似乎支持变态后的发育和存活。相反，该物种的快速亚变态发展可能由碳水化合物代谢或三酰基甘油代谢上调驱动。我们还发现参与氧化应激调节的蛋白质在红血球菌中被上调卵和类似apoB的脂质转移蛋白可能对类固醇卵母细胞的营养供应很重要。这些结果证明了质谱法如何通过识别与不同的生命史策略相关的特定分子并丰富关于这些适应性进化的方式和原因的新假设，来丰富我们对生命史进化和生物多样性的理解。