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Neuroanatomy in a middle Cambrian mollisoniid and the ancestral nervous system organization of chelicerates

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  • Javier Ortega-Hernández

    (Harvard University)

  • Rudy Lerosey-Aubril

    (Harvard University)

  • Sarah R. Losso

    (Harvard University)

  • James C. Weaver

    (Harvard University)

Abstract

Recent years have witnessed a steady increase in reports of fossilized nervous tissues among Cambrian total-group euarthropods, which allow reconstructing the early evolutionary history of these animals. Here, we describe the central nervous system of the stem-group chelicerate Mollisonia symmetrica from the mid-Cambrian Burgess Shale. The fossilized neurological anatomy of M. symmetrica includes optic nerves connected to a pair of lateral eyes, a putative condensed cephalic synganglion, and a metameric ventral nerve cord. Each trunk tergite is associated with a condensed ganglion bearing lateral segmental nerves, and linked by longitudinal connectives. The nervous system is preserved as reflective carbonaceous films underneath the phosphatized digestive tract. Our results suggest that M. symmetrica illustrates the ancestral organization of stem-group Chelicerata before the evolution of the derived neuroanatomical characters observed in Cambrian megacheirans and extant representatives. Our findings reveal a conflict between the phylogenetic signals provided by neuroanatomical and appendicular data, which we interpret as evidence of mosaic evolution in the chelicerate stem-lineage.

Suggested Citation

  • Javier Ortega-Hernández & Rudy Lerosey-Aubril & Sarah R. Losso & James C. Weaver, 2022. "Neuroanatomy in a middle Cambrian mollisoniid and the ancestral nervous system organization of chelicerates," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-11, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:13:y:2022:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-022-28054-9
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-28054-9
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    Cited by:

    1. Lorenzo Lustri & Pierre Gueriau & Allison C. Daley, 2024. "Lower Ordovician synziphosurine reveals early euchelicerate diversity and evolution," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-12, December.
    2. Karma Nanglu & Rudy Lerosey-Aubril & James C. Weaver & Javier Ortega-Hernández, 2023. "A mid-Cambrian tunicate and the deep origin of the ascidiacean body plan," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-9, December.

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