Researchers sequenced the genome of the arthropod, revealing secrets of its creepy-crawly past.
The genome of the centipede Strigamia maritime helped scientists gain insight into the genetic basis of the mysterious critter, PLOS reported. The researchers believed myriapods (centipedes and millipedes) arose from marine ancestors that walked ashore about 400 million years ago.
Strigamiais are venomous carnivores found off the Moray Firth in Scotland and other coastal regions. The insect is favored by scientists because it builds extremely accessible nests, allowing them to be gathered for study as far back as the embryonic stage.
"This genome of Strigamia has proved to be particularly valuable in deducing the content of important gene families in the ancestral arthropod, this ancestor then being the starting point for the evolution of the huge diversity of arthropods that we currently see today," said David Ferrier of the University of St. Andrews.
The study showed a surprisingly large turnover in the arthropod gene over the course of its evolution. One of the most surprising finds was that centipedes seem to have lost the genes encoding all known light receptors seen in the animal kingdom, these help control circadian rhythms.
"Strigamia live underground and have no eyes, so it is not surprising that many of the genes for light receptors are missing, but they behave as if they are hiding from the light. They must have some alternative way of detecting when they are exposed," said study leader Professor Michael Akam of Cambridge University. "It's curious, too, that this creature appears to have no body clock - or if it does, it must use a system very different to other animals."
The findings were published in a recent edition of the journal PLOS Biology.
