Oxytrichidae s. l. ciliates usually have 18 frontal-ventral-transverse cirri which are clustered to six distinct groups usu- ally originating from six longitudinal primordia segregating 1, 3, 3, 3, 4, 4 cirri. During ...Oxytrichidae s. l. ciliates usually have 18 frontal-ventral-transverse cirri which are clustered to six distinct groups usu- ally originating from six longitudinal primordia segregating 1, 3, 3, 3, 4, 4 cirri. During morphogenesis, three dorsal kinetics anlagen are primarily formed. Fragmentation of kinety 3 usually present, while sometimes secondarily lost. Dorsomarginal kineties are formed, while sometimes lost. Oxytrichids tend to have overlapping characters, e.g. cell shape and size, infraciliature, pellicle fea- tures. This makes a great problem for genera separation. In the present work, all typical 18 frontal-ventral-transverse-cirri Oxytrichi- dae s. 1. genera were revised systematically based on their living morphology, ciliature patterns and dorsal morphogenetic features. The outline of the genera, the schematic illustrations, and the key to typical 18 frontal-ventral-transverse-cirri genera of Oxytrichidae s. l. were clarified. Additionally, some morphological and morphogenetic patterns were summarized and compared.展开更多
Gene sequence-based genealogies of scuticociliates are different from those produced by morphological analyses.For this reason,11 representative scuticociliates and two ambiguously related genera were chosen to test t...Gene sequence-based genealogies of scuticociliates are different from those produced by morphological analyses.For this reason,11 representative scuticociliates and two ambiguously related genera were chosen to test the ability of combined phylogenetic analyses using both gene sequences and morphological/morphogenetic characteristics.Analyses of both the SSrRNA gene sequences and the combined datasets revealed a consistent branching pattern.While the terminal branches and the order level relationships were generally well resolved,the family level relationships remain unresolved.However,two other trees based on ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 region sequences and morphological/morphogenetic characters showed limited information,due to a lack of informative sites in these two datasets.Our data suggest,however,that the combined analysis of morphological/morphogenetic characters and gene sequences did produce some changes to the phylogenetic estimates of this group.展开更多
The sporadotrichid ciliates are an especially diverse group. A number of investigators have studied the morphological, morphogenetic, and molecular relationships among members of this group. Despite this, a consistent...The sporadotrichid ciliates are an especially diverse group. A number of investigators have studied the morphological, morphogenetic, and molecular relationships among members of this group. Despite this, a consistent classification is still lacking and several important questions about the phylogenetic relationships within this group remain unsolved. To improve our understanding of these relationships, we constructed phylogenetic trees using the nucleotide sequences of the small-subunit rRNA (SSrRNA) gene and amino acid sequences of actin I and α-tubulin. Analyses of SSrRNA gene sequences indicated that: 1) the Sporadotrichida sensu Lynn (2008) and the Oxytrichidae are polyphyletic; 2) the Uroleptus species, which are classified to urostylids, formed a sister group with the oxytrichids; 3) Halteria grandinella, which is grouped morphologically with oligotrich species, clustered within the oxytrichids. These results are congruent with previous studies based on SSrRNA gene sequences. However, the amino acid sequences of actin I and α-tubulin yielded different topologies. The main results are: 1) in all phylogenetic trees, the genus Oxytricha was paraphyletic; 2) Uroleptus was sister to a subset of Urostyla and Holosticha, albeit with low supporting values; 3) Halteria grandinella was separated distantly from the Oxytrichidae in trees inferred from actin I amino acid sequences but clustered with oligotrichids in the α-tubulin analysis. The inconsistency among the trees inferred from these different molecular markers may be caused by rapidly accumulated genetic characterizations of ciliates. Further studies with additional molecular markers and sampling of more taxa are expected to better address the relationships among sporadotrichids.展开更多
Prostomates and haptorians are two basal groups of ciliates with limited morphological characteristics available for tax- onomy. Morphologically, the structures used to identify prostomates and haptorians are similar ...Prostomates and haptorians are two basal groups of ciliates with limited morphological characteristics available for tax- onomy. Morphologically, the structures used to identify prostomates and haptorians are similar or even identical, which generate heavy taxonomic and phylogenetic confusion. In present work, phylogenetic positions lineage of two rare genera, Plagiopogon and Askenasia, were investigated. Three genes including small subunit ribosomal RNA gene (hereafter SSU rDNA), internal transcribed spacer region (ITS region), and large subunit ribosomal RNA gene (LSU rDNA) were analyzed, 10 new sequences five species each. Our findings included 1) class Prostomatea and order Haptorida are multiphyletic; 2) it may not be appropriate to place order Cyclotriehiida in subclass Haptoria, and the systematic lineage of order Cyclotrichiida needs to be verified further; 3) genus Plagio- pogon branches consistently within a clade covering most prostomes and is basal of clade Colepidae, implying its close lineage to Prostomatea; and 4) Askenasia is phylogenetically distant from the subclass Haptoria but close to classes Prostomatea, Plagiopylea and Oligohymenophorea. We supposed that the toxicyst of Askenasia may be close to taxa of prostomes instead of haptorians, and the dorsal brush is a more typical morphological characteristics of haptorians than toxicysts.展开更多
Discocephalids and pseudoamphisiellids are possibly two of the most confused groups among hypotrichous/euplotid ciliates regarding their systematic position and phylogenetic relationships.The former were often regarde...Discocephalids and pseudoamphisiellids are possibly two of the most confused groups among hypotrichous/euplotid ciliates regarding their systematic position and phylogenetic relationships.The former were often regarded as related to euplotids while the latter,in the absence of molecular data,were mostly assigned to the urostylid-like hypotrichs.In the present work,the small subunit rRNA genes of several rarely observed discocephalid and pseudoamphisiellid genera were analyzed to obtain insights into the phylogenetic relationships of these highly ambiguous Spirotrichea.Four different tree reconstruction algorithms yielded nearly identical topologies,which indicated both groups belong to the same assemblage.This assemblage is clearly isolated as a deep-branching clade and invariably positioned between Euplotida and Hypotricha.The sister group relationship of the Pseudoamphisiellidae and Discocephalidae supports the previous suggestion that they might represent an ordinal taxon,the Discocephalida.Both morphological and morphogenetic features indicate that the pseudoamphisiellids should be placed in the order Discocephalida but as a sister group to other typical discocephalids.Thus we propose establishing a new suborder,Pseudoamphisiellina subord.n.The new taxon is diagnosed by the following characteristics:(i) two distantly separated midventral rows that are morphogenetically formed with an urostylid mode;(ii) absence of the "frontoterminal row",which is formed from the posterior-most frontoventral-transverse cirral anlage in all other typical urostylids;(iii) numerous caudal cirri that derive from each of the dorsal kinety anlagen;(iv) right marginal row that has a unique de novo origin;and (v) inhabiting periphytic communities.The validity of the suborder Pseudoamphisiellina is firmly supported by molecular data.展开更多
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (31372148)the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities
文摘Oxytrichidae s. l. ciliates usually have 18 frontal-ventral-transverse cirri which are clustered to six distinct groups usu- ally originating from six longitudinal primordia segregating 1, 3, 3, 3, 4, 4 cirri. During morphogenesis, three dorsal kinetics anlagen are primarily formed. Fragmentation of kinety 3 usually present, while sometimes secondarily lost. Dorsomarginal kineties are formed, while sometimes lost. Oxytrichids tend to have overlapping characters, e.g. cell shape and size, infraciliature, pellicle fea- tures. This makes a great problem for genera separation. In the present work, all typical 18 frontal-ventral-transverse-cirri Oxytrichi- dae s. 1. genera were revised systematically based on their living morphology, ciliature patterns and dorsal morphogenetic features. The outline of the genera, the schematic illustrations, and the key to typical 18 frontal-ventral-transverse-cirri genera of Oxytrichidae s. l. were clarified. Additionally, some morphological and morphogenetic patterns were summarized and compared.
基金Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.30870280)a grant from the Center of Excellence in Biodiversity,King Saud University,Riyadh,Saudi Arabia
文摘Gene sequence-based genealogies of scuticociliates are different from those produced by morphological analyses.For this reason,11 representative scuticociliates and two ambiguously related genera were chosen to test the ability of combined phylogenetic analyses using both gene sequences and morphological/morphogenetic characteristics.Analyses of both the SSrRNA gene sequences and the combined datasets revealed a consistent branching pattern.While the terminal branches and the order level relationships were generally well resolved,the family level relationships remain unresolved.However,two other trees based on ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 region sequences and morphological/morphogenetic characters showed limited information,due to a lack of informative sites in these two datasets.Our data suggest,however,that the combined analysis of morphological/morphogenetic characters and gene sequences did produce some changes to the phylogenetic estimates of this group.
基金Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 30870264, 40976075)a grant from the Center of Excellence in Biodiversity, King Saud Universitya Marie Curie Incoming International Fellowship within the 7th European Community Framework Programme
文摘The sporadotrichid ciliates are an especially diverse group. A number of investigators have studied the morphological, morphogenetic, and molecular relationships among members of this group. Despite this, a consistent classification is still lacking and several important questions about the phylogenetic relationships within this group remain unsolved. To improve our understanding of these relationships, we constructed phylogenetic trees using the nucleotide sequences of the small-subunit rRNA (SSrRNA) gene and amino acid sequences of actin I and α-tubulin. Analyses of SSrRNA gene sequences indicated that: 1) the Sporadotrichida sensu Lynn (2008) and the Oxytrichidae are polyphyletic; 2) the Uroleptus species, which are classified to urostylids, formed a sister group with the oxytrichids; 3) Halteria grandinella, which is grouped morphologically with oligotrich species, clustered within the oxytrichids. These results are congruent with previous studies based on SSrRNA gene sequences. However, the amino acid sequences of actin I and α-tubulin yielded different topologies. The main results are: 1) in all phylogenetic trees, the genus Oxytricha was paraphyletic; 2) Uroleptus was sister to a subset of Urostyla and Holosticha, albeit with low supporting values; 3) Halteria grandinella was separated distantly from the Oxytrichidae in trees inferred from actin I amino acid sequences but clustered with oligotrichids in the α-tubulin analysis. The inconsistency among the trees inferred from these different molecular markers may be caused by rapidly accumulated genetic characterizations of ciliates. Further studies with additional molecular markers and sampling of more taxa are expected to better address the relationships among sporadotrichids.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.31222050,41376141,3112041,and 31471973)the international research projects from King Saud University(Nos.RGP-VPP-083,IRG14-22)
文摘Prostomates and haptorians are two basal groups of ciliates with limited morphological characteristics available for tax- onomy. Morphologically, the structures used to identify prostomates and haptorians are similar or even identical, which generate heavy taxonomic and phylogenetic confusion. In present work, phylogenetic positions lineage of two rare genera, Plagiopogon and Askenasia, were investigated. Three genes including small subunit ribosomal RNA gene (hereafter SSU rDNA), internal transcribed spacer region (ITS region), and large subunit ribosomal RNA gene (LSU rDNA) were analyzed, 10 new sequences five species each. Our findings included 1) class Prostomatea and order Haptorida are multiphyletic; 2) it may not be appropriate to place order Cyclotriehiida in subclass Haptoria, and the systematic lineage of order Cyclotrichiida needs to be verified further; 3) genus Plagio- pogon branches consistently within a clade covering most prostomes and is basal of clade Colepidae, implying its close lineage to Prostomatea; and 4) Askenasia is phylogenetically distant from the subclass Haptoria but close to classes Prostomatea, Plagiopylea and Oligohymenophorea. We supposed that the toxicyst of Askenasia may be close to taxa of prostomes instead of haptorians, and the dorsal brush is a more typical morphological characteristics of haptorians than toxicysts.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 40906065 and 31030059)
文摘Discocephalids and pseudoamphisiellids are possibly two of the most confused groups among hypotrichous/euplotid ciliates regarding their systematic position and phylogenetic relationships.The former were often regarded as related to euplotids while the latter,in the absence of molecular data,were mostly assigned to the urostylid-like hypotrichs.In the present work,the small subunit rRNA genes of several rarely observed discocephalid and pseudoamphisiellid genera were analyzed to obtain insights into the phylogenetic relationships of these highly ambiguous Spirotrichea.Four different tree reconstruction algorithms yielded nearly identical topologies,which indicated both groups belong to the same assemblage.This assemblage is clearly isolated as a deep-branching clade and invariably positioned between Euplotida and Hypotricha.The sister group relationship of the Pseudoamphisiellidae and Discocephalidae supports the previous suggestion that they might represent an ordinal taxon,the Discocephalida.Both morphological and morphogenetic features indicate that the pseudoamphisiellids should be placed in the order Discocephalida but as a sister group to other typical discocephalids.Thus we propose establishing a new suborder,Pseudoamphisiellina subord.n.The new taxon is diagnosed by the following characteristics:(i) two distantly separated midventral rows that are morphogenetically formed with an urostylid mode;(ii) absence of the "frontoterminal row",which is formed from the posterior-most frontoventral-transverse cirral anlage in all other typical urostylids;(iii) numerous caudal cirri that derive from each of the dorsal kinety anlagen;(iv) right marginal row that has a unique de novo origin;and (v) inhabiting periphytic communities.The validity of the suborder Pseudoamphisiellina is firmly supported by molecular data.