Karyoklepty is a strategy for cellular evolution, whereby a predator cell appropriates the

nucleus Nucleus ( : nuclei) is a Latin word for the seed inside a fruit. It most often refers to: *Atomic nucleus, the very dense central region of an atom *Cell nucleus, a central organelle of a eukaryotic cell, containing most of the cell's DNA Nucle ...

of a cell from another organism to supplement its own biochemical capabilities. In the related process of kleptoplasty, the predator sequesters

plastid The plastid (Greek: πλαστός; plastós: formed, molded – plural plastids) is a membrane-bound organelle found in the Cell (biology), cells of plants, algae, and some other eukaryotic organisms. They are considered to be intracellular endosy ...

s (especially

chloroplast A chloroplast () is a type of membrane-bound organelle known as a plastid that conducts photosynthesis mostly in plant and algal cells. The photosynthetic pigment chlorophyll captures the energy from sunlight, converts it, and stores it in ...

s) from dietary

algae Algae (; singular alga ) is an informal term for a large and diverse group of photosynthetic eukaryotic organisms. It is a polyphyletic grouping that includes species from multiple distinct clades. Included organisms range from unicellular mic ...

. The chloroplasts can still photosynthesize, but do not last long after the prey's cells are metabolised. If the predator can also sequester cell nuclei from the prey to encode proteins for the plastids, it can sustain them. ''Karyoklepty'' is this sequestration of nuclei; even after sequestration, the nuclei are still capable of

transcription Transcription refers to the process of converting sounds (voice, music etc.) into letters or musical notes, or producing a copy of something in another medium, including: Genetics * Transcription (biology), the copying of DNA into RNA, the fir ...

. Johnson et al. described and named karyoklepty in 2007 after observing it in the ciliate species ''

Mesodinium rubrum ''Mesodinium rubrum'' (or ''Myrionecta rubra'') is a species of ciliates. It constitutes a plankton community and is found throughout the year, most abundantly in spring and fall, in coastal areas. Although discovered in 1908, its scientific im ...

''. ''Karyoklepty'' is a Greek compound of the words ''karydi'' ("kernel") and ''kleftis'' ("thief").

See also

References

Further reading