Tuberlatum coatsi gen. n., sp. n. (Alveolata, Perkinsozoa), a New Parasitoid with Short Germ Tubes Infecting Marine Dinoflagellates

Publication date: Available online 21 December 2018Source: ProtistAuthor(s): Boo Seong Jeon, Myung Gil ParkPerkinsozoa is an exclusively parasitic group within the alveolates and infections have been reported from various organisms, including marine shellfish, marine dinoflagellates, freshwater cryptophytes, and tadpoles. Despite its high abundance and great genetic diversity revealed by recent environmental rDNA sequencing studies, Perkinsozoa biodiversity remains poorly understood. During the intensive samplings in Korean coastal waters during June 2017, a new parasitoid of dinoflagellates was detected and was successfully established in culture. The new parasitoid was most characterized by the presence of two to four dome-shaped, short germ tubes in the sporangium. The opened germ tubes were biconvex lens-shaped in the top view and were characterized by numerous wrinkles around their openings. Phylogenetic analyses based on the concatenated SSU and LSU rDNA sequences revealed that the new parasitoid was included in the family Parviluciferaceae, in which all members were comprised of two separate clades, one containing Parvilucifera species (P. infectans, P. corolla, and P. rostrata), and the other containing Dinovorax pyriformis, Snorkelia spp., and the new parasitoid from this study. Based on morphological, ultrastructural, and molecular data, we propose to erect a new genus and species, Tuberlatum coatsi gen. n., sp. n., from the new parasitoid found in this study. Furth...
Source: Protist - Category: Molecular Biology Source Type: research