Kelp switch between sexual and asexual reproduction depending on whether there are potential mates nearby, according to a study by Daniel Liesner at the Max Planck Institute for Biology Tübingen, Germany, and colleagues, published November 12th in the open access journal PLOS Biology.
Although most animals reproduce sexually, asexual (clonal) reproduction is common in plants, fungi and algae. Many species are capable of both sexual and asexual reproduction, but how and why organisms choose to switch between these two reproductive strategies is poorly understood. To investigate, researchers studied laboratory and wild populations of the split-fan kelp (Laminaria pallida), a species of large, brown seaweed found along the Southern Atlantic coast. Laboratory experiments revealed that both males and females are capable of reproducing asexually. However, asexual reproduction produced fewer offspring, which tended to exhibit developmental abnormalities and slower growth.
To understand the molecular mechanisms underpinning kelp reproduction, the researchers sequenced RNA from male and female kelp at different stages of sexual and asexual reproduction. Although gene expression patterns in male and female kelp were distinct, during asexual reproduction, male gene expression underwent de-masculinization, becoming more similar to that of females.
Next, the researchers collected 523 samples of wild split-fan kelp from South Africa and Namibia and found no evidence of asexual reproduction in wild populations. However, when wild kelp were grown in single-sex cultures in the lab, 92% reproduced asexually. The researchers hypothesized that the presence of the opposite sex might suppress asexual reproduction, explaining why it was observed in the lab but not in the wild. To test this hypothesis, they grew male and female kelp in the same petri dish, separated by a fine mesh. Both sexes were significantly more likely to reproduce asexually in the absence of a suitable mating partner. This suggests that asexual reproduction may be suppressed by a chemical signal that can diffuse through water and alert kelp to the presence of nearby mates.
The study demonstrates unexpected flexibility in the kelp life cycle and reveals how they balance different reproductive strategies. Although asexual reproduction is less efficient, it may provide a back-up strategy for kelp in sparsely populated habitats or during times of environmental stress. These findings may help conservationists protect this ecologically important marine species in a changing ocean environment.
The authors add, "Our findings show that kelps have much greater flexibility in how they reproduce than previously appreciated. Remarkably, even male gametes can develop into new individuals without fertilisation, providing a potential reproductive backup when mating partners are scarce. This flexibility may help kelp populations persist under challenging environmental conditions."
In your coverage, please use this URL to provide access to the freely available paper in PLOS Biology: https://plos.io/4yK9hzP
Citation: Liesner D, Luthringer R, Kandjengo L, Bolton JJ, Rothman MD, Valero M, et al. (2026) Life-cycle plasticity enables conditional asexual reproduction in a kelp. PLoS Biol 24(11): e3004065. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3004065
Author countries: Germany, Namibia, South Africa, France
Funding: This work was supported by the Max Planck Society (D.L.; R.L.; F.B.H.; S.M.C.; https://www.mpg.de/en ), the European Research Council (864038 to S.M.C.; https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/864038 ), the Bettencourt-Schuller Foundation (S.M.C.; https://www.fondationbs.org/en/our-community/laureates-and-projects/susana-coelho ), the Moore Foundation (GBMF11489, S.M.C.; https://moore.org/grant-detail?grantId=GBMF11489 ), and the MPG-CNRS exchange programme SALTO (D.L.; https://international.cnrs.fr/en/appel/salto-program-launch/ ). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.
