Data from: A phylum-wide survey reveals multiple independent gains of head regeneration in Nemertea

Animals vary widely in their ability to regenerate, suggesting that
regenerative ability has a rich evolutionary history. However, our
understanding of this history remains limited because regenerative ability
has only been evaluated in a tiny fraction of species. Available
comparative regeneration studies have identified losses of regenerative
ability, yet clear documentation of gains is lacking. We assessed ability
to regenerate heads and tails either through our own experiments or from
literature reports for 35 species of Nemertea spanning the diversity of
the phylum, including representatives of 10 families and all three orders.
We generated a phylogenetic framework using sequence data to reconstruct
the evolutionary history of head and tail regenerative ability across the
phylum and found that all evaluated species can remake a posterior end but
surprisingly few could regenerate a complete head. Our analysis
reconstructs a nemertean ancestor unable to regenerate a head and
indicates independent gains of head regenerative ability in at least four
separate lineages, with one of these gains taking place as recently as the
last 10-15 mya. Our study highlights nemerteans as a valuable group for
studying evolution of regeneration and identifying mechanisms associated
with repeated gains of regenerative ability.