| a new investigation of the marine ciliate, trachelostyla pediculiformis (cohn, 1866) borror, 1972 (ciliophora, hypotrichida), with establishment of a new genus, spirotrachelostyla nov. gen. | the morphology and infraciliature of the type species of the ciliate genus trachelostyla, t. pediculiformis (cohn, 1866) borror, 1972, collected from the bohai sea near tianjin, north china, were investigated using live observation and protargol impregnation. the chinese population corresponds well with the original description, as follows: size about 80-150 x 20-30 microm in vivo; body dorsoventrally flattened and non-spiral; outline elongate, with anterior region conspicuously narrowed while p ... | 2006 | 17070752 |
| a new soil hypotrich ciliate (protozoa, ciliophora) from slovakia: gonostomum albicarpathicum nov. spec. | the morphology and infraciliature of the soil hypotrich ciliate, gonostomum albicarpathicum nov. spec., collected from biele karpaty (white carpathian mts.), slovakia, were investigated using living observations and the protargol impregnation method. this new species is distinguished from its congeners by a combination of characters including arrangement of macronuclear nodules forming a pair of nodules each ahead of and behind mid-body; 6-10 frontoventral cirri and 3 frontoterminal cirri formin ... | 2006 | 17070754 |
| gymnodinioides pacifica, n. sp., an exuviotrophic ciliated protozoan (ciliophora, apostomatida) from euphausiids of the northeastern pacific. | a new species of apostome ciliate, gymnodinioides pacifica n. sp. from the euphausiid euphausia pacifica is described. the ciliated protozoan encysts on the setae of the appendages, telson and antennae. it excysts and enters the exoskeleton of the host after moulting, where it feeds on exuvial fluid. the phoront and trophont stages of this ciliate are described. the ciliature of the trophont has the following characteristics that distinguish it from the other species of gymnodinioides: (1) a sho ... | 2006 | 17070755 |
| phylogenetic position of the marine ciliate, cardiostomatella vermiforme (kahl, 1928) corliss, 1960 inferred from the complete ssrrna gene sequence, with establishment of a new order loxocephalida n. ord. (ciliophora, oligohymenophorea). | the small subunit rrna (ssrrna) gene was sequenced for cardiostomatella vermiforme, a large marine ciliate the systematic position of which is uncertain but which has been regarded as a scuticociliate for about forty years. the present work indicates that this organism, together with a closely related species, dexiotrichides pangi, always form a separate assemblage as a sister group to the scuticociliates sensu stricto. the fact that the clade comprising cardiostomatella and dexiotrichides branc ... | 2006 | 17070756 |
| benthic ciliates in adriatic sea lagoons. | sediment samples were collected from four sandy and muddy bottom sites at both sacca di goro lagoon (northern adriatic sea) and lesina lagoon (southern adriatic sea) on one occasion in may and one occasion in july in order to make a comparative study of ciliate abundance and diversity. the temperature, ph, dissolved oxygen, and redox potential were measured at the time of collection, the water content of the sediments was determined, and samples subjected to granulometric analysis. the ciliated ... | 2006 | 17070761 |
| spathidium seppelti foissneri nov. subspec., spathidium simplinucleatum nov. stat., and dileptus americanus kahl, 1931, one new and two poorly known soil gymnostome ciliates from soils of slovakia. | the morphology and infraciliature of three soil gymnostome ciliates, spathidium seppelti foissneri nov. subspec., spathidium simplinucleatum nov. stat., and dileptus americanus, collected from slovakia, were investigated using live observation and protargol impregnation. s. seppelti foissneri is distinguished from its congeners by a combination of characters including: distinctly spatulate shape with convex oral bulge; 25 ellipsoidal, scattered macronuclear nodules; an average of 23 ciliary rows ... | 2006 | 17070762 |
| alpha-tubulin minichromosome promoters in the stichotrichous ciliate stylonychia lemnae. | ciliated protists are model organisms for a number of molecular phenomena including telomerase function, self-splicing introns, and an rna interference-related mechanism in programmed dna elimination. despite this relevance, our knowledge about promoters and transcriptional regulation in these organisms is very limited. the macronuclear genome of stichotrichous ciliates consists of minichromosomes which typically encode a single gene. the 5' nontranscribed spacers are usually no longer than 400 ... | 2007 | 17085637 |
| rigidothrix goiseri nov. gen., nov. spec. (rigidotrichidae nov. fam.), a new "flagship" ciliate from the niger floodplain breaks the flexibility-dogma in the classification of stichotrichine spirotrichs (ciliophora, spirotrichea). | rigidothrix goiseri nov. gen., nov. spec. was discovered in soil from the niger floodplain near to the town of timbuktu, republic of mali. its morphology, ontogenesis, and 18s rdna gene sequence were studied with standard methods. rigidothrix goiseri is very conspicuous in vivo because of its average size of 230x70 microm and a distinct tail. further main characteristics include the rigid body; the conspicuous, stylonychid frontal area; the undulating membranes in oxytricha pattern; a mighty ado ... | 2006 | 17113471 |
| pseudovorticella zhengae n. sp., p. difficilis (kahl, 1933) jankowski, 1976, and p. punctata (dons, 1918) warren, 1987, three marine peritrichous ciliates from north china. | the morphology, infraciliature and silverline system of three marine peritrichous ciliates, pseudovorticella zhengae n. sp., p. difficilis (kahl, 1933) jankowski, 1976 and p. punctata (dons, 1918) warren, 1987, were investigated by observation in vivo and silver-staining methods. the new species is characterized by its body shape, the appearance of the peristomial lip, the number of transverse silverlines, and the configuration of infundibular polykinety 3; p. difficilis by its body shape, the c ... | 2006 | 17113472 |
| taxonomic characterization of two marine peritrichous ciliates, epicarchesium corlissi n. sp. and pseudovorticella jiangi n. sp. (ciliophora: peritrichia), from northern china. | two new marine peritrich ciliates, epicarchesium corlissi n. sp. and pseudovorticella jiangi n. sp., were discovered in mariculture waters on the coast of northern china near qingdao. their morphology, infraciliature and silverline system were investigated based on both living and silver-impregnated specimens. e. corlissi is characterized as follows: marine epicarchesium with dichotomously branched stalk; zooids elongate, approximately 60-70 x 25-35 microm in vivo; peristomial collar double-fold ... | 2006 | 17113473 |
| the microfauna communities and operational monitoring of an activated sludge plant in china. | the composition of the microfauna community in aeration tanks at the baoding sewage treatment plant in china was analysed each week from july 2002 to july 2003. the community composition of these microfauna populations was compared with effluent quality data recorded on the same days. a total of 94 species of ciliates, 40 species of amoebae and 13 species of large flagellates were identified in the 50 samples analysed. numbers of metazoa including rotifers, nematodes, gastrotrichs and oligochaet ... | 2006 | 17113474 |
| new entodiniomorphid ciliates from the intestine of the wild african white rhinoceros belong to a new family, the gilchristidae. | gilchristia artemis n.g., n.sp. and digilchristia draconis n.g., n.sp. in the order entodiniomorphida are described from the large intestine of the african white rhinoceros, and a new family gilchristidae is proposed to contain them. these new species have a c-shaped adoral polybrachykinety, a slender vestibular polybrachykinety, and paralabial kineties along the ventral side of the adoral polybrachykinety in their retractable adoral ciliary zone, showing the same arrangement as in the rumen cil ... | 2006 | 17113475 |
| use of tetrahymena thermophila to study the role of protozoa in inactivation of viruses in water. | the ability of a ciliate to inactivate bacteriophage was studied because these viruses are known to influence the size and diversity of bacterial populations, which affect nutrient cycling in natural waters and effluent quality in sewage treatment, and because ciliates are ubiquitous in aquatic environments, including sewage treatment plants. tetrahymena thermophila was used as a representative ciliate; t4 was used as a model bacteriophage. the t4 titer was monitored on escherichia coli b in a d ... | 2007 | 17114327 |
| parasite fauna of the eel, anguilla anguilla (linnaeus, 1758), from the polish part of the vistula lagoon. | eel is one of the most valuable commercial fish species of the vistula lagoon. for this reason its infection by non-indigenous species of parasites is the subject of the interest of sciencists. | 2006 | 17120993 |
| two new species of symbiotic ciliates from the respiratory tract of cetaceans with establishment of the new genus planilamina n. gen. (dysteriida, kyaroikeidae). | examination of mucus discharged from the blowhole of atlantic bottlenose dolphin (tursiops truncatus) at marine life oceanarium, gulfport, mississippi, and false killer whale (pseudorca crassidens) and atlantic bottlenose dolphin at seaworld orlando, orlando, florida, using live observations and protargol impregnation revealed mixed infections of kyaroikeus cetarius and two new species. planilamina n. gen. is characterized by a c-shaped argentophilic band located along the laterally flattened ma ... | 2006 | 17123404 |
| protist genetic diversity in the acidic hydrothermal environments of lassen volcanic national park, usa. | we examined eukaryote genetic diversity in the hydrothermal environments of lassen volcanic national park (lvnp), northern california. we sampled hydrothermal areas of the bumpass hell, sulfur works, devil's kitchen, and boiling springs lake sites, all of which included diverse acidic pools, mud pots, and streams with visible algal mats and biofilms. temperatures varied from 15 to 85 degrees c and ph from 1.7 to 5.8. dna extraction methods compared by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis fing ... | 2006 | 17123405 |
| tunicothrix rostrata n. g., n. sp., a new urostylid ciliate (ciliophora, stichotrichia) from the yellow sea. | the morphology and infraciliature of a new ciliate, tunicothrix rostrata n. g., n. sp., isolated from the yellow sea, are investigated using live observation and protargol impregnation. tunicothrix rostrata measures about 160 x 40 mum in vivo, and has a frontal beak-like protrusion, a conspicuous cortical alveolar layer, two right marginal rows, and usually three distinct midventral pairs. the discovery of t. rostrata enables us to reconsider the classification of erniella wilberti, a curious ci ... | 2006 | 17123412 |
| a molecular phylogenetic investigation of zoothamnium (ciliophora, peritrichia, sessilida). | the gene coding for 18s small subunit ribosomal rna (ssu rrna) was sequenced in seven free-living, marine species of the sessiline peritrich genus zoothamnium. these were zoothamnium niveum, zoothamnium alternans, zoothamnium pelagicum, and four unidentified species. the ssu rrna gene also was sequenced in vorticella convallaria, vorticella microstoma, and in an unidentified, freshwater species of vorticella. phylogenetic trees were constructed using these new sequences to test a previously publ ... | 2006 | 17123413 |
| effects of altered temperature and precipitation on desert protozoa associated with biological soil crusts. | biological soil crusts are diverse assemblages of bacteria, cyanobacteria, algae, fungi, lichens, and mosses that cover much of arid land soils. the objective of this study was to quantify protozoa associated with biological soil crusts and test the response of protozoa to increased temperature and precipitation as is predicted by some global climate models. protozoa were more abundant when associated with cyanobacteria/lichen crusts than with cyanobacteria crusts alone. amoebae, flagellates, an ... | 2006 | 17123415 |
| redescriptions of two marine planktonic ciliates from china, parastrombidium faurei (kahl, 1932) maeda, 1986 and strombidium capitatum (leegaard, 1915) kahl, 1932 (ciliophora, oligotrichea). | the morphology and infraciliature of two marine planktonic ciliates, parastrombidium faurei (kahl, 1932) maeda, 1986 and strombidium capitatum (leegaard, 1915) kahl, 1932, from coastal waters near qingdao (tsingtao), northern china, were investigated based on live observation and protargol impregnation. this is the first time that these two species are reported from yellow sea/north pacific. emended diagnoses for the genus parastrombidium and its single species p. faurei are provided as they wer ... | 2007 | 17125981 |
| anti-ulcer activity of crude alcoholic extract of toona ciliata roemer (heart wood). | the ethanol extract of toona ciliata roemer (heart wood) was evaluated for its anti-ulcer activity against aspirin plus pylorous ligation induced gastric ulcer (antisecretory), hcl-ethanol induced ulcer (cytoprotective) and water immersion stress induced ulcer in rats. we found that toona ciliata extract at a dose of 300mg/kg p.o. markedly decrease the incidence of ulcers in all the three models. ethanol extract of toona ciliata showed significant reduction in gastric volume, free acidity, total ... | 2007 | 17134860 |
| [ciliates from the intestine of yakut horse (equus caballus)]. | endobiotic ciliates of native yakut horse are investigated. 57 ciliate species have been found. from 17 up to 43 species of ciliates have been revealed in each host specimen. the specimens of alloiozona trizona hsiung, 1930 and triadinium caudatum fiorentini, 1890 were present in 100 % of the horses. the endemic genus and species of allantosomides, strelkowella urunbasiensis kornilova, 2004, has been found in 11 horses. allantoxena japonensis (imai, 1979) and cycloposthium ishikawai gassovsky, 1 ... | 2006 | 17144407 |
| [stylonychia lemnae as a model organism for studies of macronuclear minichromosomes of the ciliates]. | the unique structural and functional organization of macronuclear (somatic nucleus) genome of the spirotrichous ciliates, exemplified by stylonychia lemnae, has been reviewed. data on the architecture of s. lemnae nuclear apparatus at interphase and during vegetative cell division, conjugation or autogamy are summarized. special attention being paid to the structural and functional peculiarities of short macronuclear minichromosomes known to contain protein-coding regions, 5'- and 3'-flanking no ... | 2006 | 17147253 |
| [entodiniid ciliates (entodiniidae, entodiniomorphida) living in the rumen of domesticated goats (capra hircus l.) in southeastern turkey.]. | the make-up of rumen ciliate protozoons belonging to the family entodiniidae (order: entodiniomorphida) from domesticated goats (capra hircus l.) in southeastern turkey was investigated. as the result of the investigation, a genera [entodinium] of entodiniomorphida, 20 species belonging to entodiniidae (fam: [e. exiguum, e. nanellum, e. minimum, e. parvum, e. simplex, e. dubardi, e. ovinum, e. dilobum, e. constrictum, e. bovis, e. bursa, e. ellipsoideum, e. longinucleatum, e. caudatum, e. simula ... | 2005 | 17160825 |
| [morphometric variations of the rumen ciliate, ophryoscolex purkynjei stein, 1858 (ciliophora: entodiniomorphida) from cypriot domestic goats]. | the species ophryoscolex purkynjei and its four formae [o. p. f. purkynjei, o. p. f. bifidobicinctus, o. p. f. bicoronatus and o. p. f. tricoronatus] from the cypriot domestic goats (capra hircus) have been investigated from the viewpoint of the diagnostic morphometrical characteristics. moreover, it was demonstrated that there was significant morphometrical variations among the same formae in different host animals. as the result of our investigation, it has been suggested that all of the morph ... | 2006 | 17160863 |
| phylogeny of the order choreotrichida (ciliophora, spirotricha, oligotrichea) as inferred from morphology, ultrastructure, ontogenesis, and ssrrna gene sequences. | the phylogeny within the order choreotrichida is reconstructed using (i) morphologic, ontogenetic, and ultrastructural evidence for the cladistic approach and (ii) the small subunit ribosomal rna (ssrrna) gene sequences, including the new sequence of rimostrombidium lacustris. the morphologic cladograms and the gene trees converge rather well for the choreotrichida, demonstrating that hyaline and agglutinated loricae do not characterize distinct lineages, i.e., both lorica types can be associate ... | 2007 | 17166704 |
| ciliates are the dominant grazers on pico- and nanoplankton in a shallow, naturally highly eutrophic lake. | abundance and biomass of the microbial loop members [bacteria, heterotrophic nanoflagellates (hnf), and ciliates] were seasonally measured in the naturally eutrophic and shallow (2.8 mean depth) lake võrtsjärv, which has a large open surface area (average 270 km2) and highly turbid water (secchi depth <1 m). grazing rates (filter feeding rates) on 0.5-, 3-, and 6-microm-diameter particles were measured to estimate pico- and nanoplankton grazing (filter feeding) by micro- and metazooplankton. amo ... | 2007 | 17186145 |
| sterol composition of freshwater algivorous ciliates does not resemble dietary composition. | algivorous ciliates represent an important link in freshwater food webs, as they transfer energy and biochemical matter from their algal prey to mesozooplankton predators. however, it is still unknown how dietary composition influences the biochemical composition of ciliates. we analyzed the sterol composition of the algivorous ciliates balanion planctonicum and urotricha farcta and compared it to the sterol composition of their diet--the cryptomonad cryptomonas phaseolus. the sterol composition ... | 2007 | 17186159 |
| amphileptus aeschtae nov. spec. and amphileptus eigneri nov. spec. (ciliophora, pleurostomatida), two new marine pleurostomatid ciliates from china. | the morphology and infraciliature of two pleurostomatid ciliates, amphileptus aeschtae nov. spec. and amphileptus eigneri nov. spec., collected from shrimp-culturing ponds of the bohai sea, china, were investigated using live observations and the protargol impregnation method. the new species a. aeschtae is identified by the presence of 200-300 macronuclear nodules and several contractile vacuoles along the ventral side of the cell. a. eigneri differs from its congeners, inter alia, by the marin ... | 2007 | 17202030 |
| reproductive limits of a late-flowering high-mountain mediterranean plant along an elevational climate gradient. | mountain plants are particularly sensitive to climate warming because snowmelt timing exerts a direct control on their reproduction. current warming is leading to earlier snowmelt dates and longer snow-free periods. our hypothesis is that high-mountain mediterranean plants are not able to take advantage of a lengthened snow-free period because this leads to longer drought that truncates the growing season. however, reproductive timing may somewhat mitigate these negative effects through temporal ... | 2007 | 17204083 |
| ultraviolet-b radiation effects on the structure and function of lower trophic levels of the marine planktonic food web. | the impact of uv-b radiation (uvbr; 280-320 nm) on lower levels of a natural plankton assemblage (bacteria, phytoplankton and microzooplankton) from the st. lawrence estuary was studied during 9 days using several immersed outdoor mesocosms. two exposure treatments were used in triplicate mesocosms: natural uvbr (n treatment, considered as the control treatment) and lamp-enhanced uvbr (h treatment, simulating 60% depletion of the ozone layer). a phytoplankton bloom developed after day 3, but no ... | 2006 | 17205621 |
| the whole is more than the sum of its parts: modeling community-level effects of uvr in marine ecosystems. | the effect of uvb radiation (uvbr, 290-320 nm) on the dynamics of the lower levels of the marine plankton community was modeled. the model was built using differential equations and shows a good fit to experimental data collected in mesocosms (defined as large enclosures of 1500 l filled with natural marine waters). some unexpected results appear to be possible by indirect effects in prey (bacteria, phytoplankton and heterotrophic flagellates). in particular, apparent competition appears between ... | 2006 | 17205623 |
| effects of enhanced uv-b on pigment-based phytoplankton biomass and composition of mesocosm-enclosed natural marine communities from three latitudes. | a series of three outdoor mesocosm experiments was undertaken in rimouski (canada), ubatuba (brazil) and ushuaia (southern argentina) to examine the effects of lamp-enhanced uv-b (280-320 nm) on phytoplankton communities isolated from seawater at each site. detailed pigment composition was used to identify these communities. each experiment compared three replicated uv-b treatments, consisting of natural sunlight conditions (nuvb), low-level uv-b enhancement corresponding to local 30% ozone depl ... | 2006 | 17205624 |
| endosymbiosis in statu nascendi: close phylogenetic relationship between obligately endosymbiotic and obligately free-living polynucleobacter strains (betaproteobacteria). | bacterial strains affiliated to the phylogenetically shallow subcluster c (pnecc) of the polynucleobacter cluster, which is characterized by a minimal 16s rrna gene sequence similarity of approximately 98.5%, have been reported to occur as obligate endosymbionts of ciliates (euplotes spp.), as well as to occur as free-living cells in the pelagic zone of freshwater habitats. we investigated if these two groups of closely related bacteria represent strains fundamentally differing in lifestyle, or ... | 2007 | 17222133 |
| eukaryotic diversity associated with carbonates and fluid-seawater interface in lost city hydrothermal field. | lost city is a unique off-axis hydrothermal vent field characterized by highly alkaline and relatively low-temperature fluids that harbours huge carbonate chimneys. we have carried out a molecular survey based on 18s rdna sequences of the eukaryotic communities associated with fluid-seawater interfaces and with carbonates from venting areas and the chimney wall. our study reveals a variety of lineages belonging to eight major taxa: metazoa, fungi, heterokonta (stramenopiles), alveolata, radiolar ... | 2007 | 17222152 |
| changes in the ciliate assemblage along a fluvial system related to physical, chemical and geomorphological characteristics. | samples were collected monthly from the water-sediment interface at six stations along the mincio river (northern italy) during a 1-year study of the ciliated protozoan communities. four stations were located upstream of the mantua lakes in the hyporhithron fluvial zone and two stations were located in the potamon fluvial zone between the mantua lakes and the confluence with the po river. a total of 133 species of active trophic ciliates belonging to 76 genera were found. community structures re ... | 2007 | 17222541 |
| multiplex pcr approach for species detection and differentiation within the genus spirostomum (ciliophora, heterotrichea). | | 2007 | 17223609 |
| biochemical prey recognition by planktonic protozoa. | planktonic flagellates and ciliates are the major consumers of phytoplankton and bacterioplankton in aquatic environments, playing a pivotal role in carbon cycling and nutrient regeneration. despite certain unicellular predators using chemosensory responses to locate and select their prey, the biochemical mechanisms behind prey reception and selection have not been elucidated. here we identify a ca(2+)-dependent, mannose-binding lectin on the marine dinoflagellate oxyrrhis marina, which is used ... | 2007 | 17227426 |
| differential expression of cysteine proteases in developmental stages of the parasitic ciliate ichthyophthirius multifiliis. | an expressed sequence tag database of the freshwater fish parasite, ichthyophthirius multifiliis (ciliophora) was analyzed to seek for proteases potentially involved in the invasion and degradation of host tissues during infection. the translation of the database revealed two cathepsin l cysteine proteases (icp1 and icp2) of the c1a peptidase subfamily. the analysis of icp1 and icp2 sequences suggested that both proteases would be synthesized as preproproteins, with a mature domain of 27.9 and 2 ... | 2007 | 17227460 |
| effects of organophosphate compounds on a soil protist, colpoda inflata (ciliophora, colpodidae). | many investigations on protists indicate that they play an important role in agricultural soils. we have tested the effects of three organophosphate (op) pesticides, basudin, cidial, and fenix, on the soil ciliate colpoda inflata, and examined its viability, fission rate, ability to excyst and extrude macronuclear chromatin into cytoplasm. exposure to these ops caused a dose-dependent effect on cell viability, and significantly reduced the mean fission rate at a concentration of 1/10(5) v/v. aft ... | 2006 | 17228426 |
| patterns of relatedness in the kudoidae with descriptions of kudoa chaetodoni n. sp. and k. lethrini n. sp. (myxosporea: multivalvulida). | two morphologically novel kudoa species are characterized from brain tissue of fish, kudoa chaetodoni n. sp. from chaetodon unimaculatus (chaetodontidae) and kudoa lethrini n. sp. from gymnocranius audleyi and lethrinus harak (lethrinidae). additionally we characterized a 5-spore valve (sv) kudoa species from the brain of sillago ciliata (sillaginidae). intriguingly, its 18s rdna sequence was identical to that of the 7 sv kudoa yasunagai extracted from the brain of a paralichthyid halibut in jap ... | 2007 | 17234042 |
| phytoplankton food quality determines time windows for successful zooplankton reproductive pulses. | recruitment success at the early life stages is a critical process for zooplankton demography. copepods often dominate the zooplankton in marine coastal zones and are prey of the majority of fish larvae. hypotheses interpreting variations of copepod recruitment are based on the concepts of "naupliar predation," "nutritional deficiency," and "toxic effect" of diatom diets. contradictory laboratory and field studies have reached opposite conclusions on the effects of diatoms on copepod reproductiv ... | 2006 | 17249223 |
| zooxanthellae harvested by ciliates associated with brown band syndrome of corals remain photosynthetically competent. | brown band syndrome is a new coral affliction characterized by a local accumulation of yet-unidentified ciliates migrating as a band along the branches of coral colonies. in the current study, morphologically intact zooxanthellae (= symbiodinium) were observed in great numbers inside the ciliates (>50 dinoflagellates per ciliate). microscale oxygen measurements and variable chlorophyll a fluorescence analysis along with microscopic observations demonstrated that zooxanthellae within the ciliates ... | 2007 | 17259357 |
| a molecular approach to identify active microbes in environmental eukaryote clone libraries. | a rapid method for the simultaneous extraction of rna and dna from eukaryote plankton samples was developed in order to discriminate between indigenous active cells and signals from inactive or even dead organisms. the method was tested using samples from below the chemocline of an anoxic danish fjord. the simple protocol yielded rna and dna of a purity suitable for amplification by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (rt-pcr) and pcr, respectively. we constructed an rrna-derived and ... | 2007 | 17264997 |
| development and structure of eukaryotic biofilms in an extreme acidic environment, rio tinto (sw, spain). | an in situ colonization assay was performed to study the early stages of biofilm formation in rio tinto (sw, spain), an extremely acidic environment (ph ca. 2). eukaryotic assemblages were monitored at monthly intervals for 1 year. diversity, colonization rates, and seasonal variations were analyzed. structural features of naturally grown biofilms were explored by light and scanning electron microscopy in backscattered electron mode. a total of 14 taxa were recognized as constituents of the euka ... | 2007 | 17268880 |
| intron evolution and information processing in the dna polymerase alpha gene in spirotrichous ciliates: a hypothesis for interconversion between dna and rna deletion. | the somatic dna molecules of spirotrichous ciliates are present as linear chromosomes containing mostly single-gene coding sequences with short 5' and 3' flanking regions. only a few conserved motifs have been found in the flanking dna. motifs that may play roles in promoting and/or regulating transcription have not been consistently detected. moreover, comparing subtelomeric regions of 1,356 end-sequenced somatic chromosomes failed to identify more putatively conserved motifs. | 2007 | 17270054 |
| morphological redescription of two endocommensal ciliates, entorhipidium fukuii uyemura, 1934 and madsenia indomita (madsen, 1931) kahl, 1934 from digestive tracts of sea urchins of the yellow sea, china (ciliophora; scuticociliatida). | definitions of the genera entorhipidium and madsenia have been updated on the basis of the results of studies on the living morphology and infraciliature of the endocommensal ciliates, entorhipidium fukuii uyemura, 1934 and madsenia indomita (madsen, 1931) kahl, 1934, isolated from digestive tracts of the sea urchin, hemicentrotus pulcherrimus. entorhipidium are flattened marine endocommensal scuticociliates with a sigmoid body shape and conspicuous tail; the buccal cavity is in the anterior hal ... | 2007 | 17276046 |
| live observation of excystment in the spirotrich ciliate meseres corlissi. | excystment of meseres corlissi petz and foissner 1992 was observed by light microscopy. excysting cells were first recognized by the appearance of a non-pulsating vacuole. with increasing size of this vacuole, the outer cyst wall ruptured, creating a narrow slit. the emerging protoplast was enclosed by an inner flexible membrane. oral membranelles were faintly visible, but inactive at this stage. within the next hour, oral membranelles and a pulsating vacuole became active, and the ciliate start ... | 2007 | 17280821 |
| [cloning and characterization of a novel trinucleotide repeat-containing gene garp from euplotes octocarinatus]. | the expansion of trinucleotide repeats in genome is related to the phthogenesis of several neurodegenerative diseases. a garp (glutamic acid-rich protein) gene was isolated from the macronuclear plasmid mini library of euplotes octocarinatus. a micronuclear version of the garp gene was amplified by polymerase chain reaction. the macronuclear dna molecule carrying the garp gene is 460 bp long and shows the characteristics of macronuclear chromosomes of hypotrichous ciliates. one of the three cyst ... | 2007 | 17284430 |
| ssu rrna reveals a sequential increase in shell complexity among the euglyphid testate amoebae (rhizaria: euglyphida). | the existing data on the molecular phylogeny of filose testate amoebae from order euglyphida has revealed contradictions between traditional morphological classification and ssu rrna phylogeny and, moreover, the position of several important genera remained unknown. we therefore carried out a study aiming to fill several important gaps and better understand the relationships among the main euglyphid testate amoebae and the evolutionary steps that led to the present diversity at a higher level. w ... | 2007 | 17292668 |
| trichodinid ectoparasites (ciliophora: peritricha) from misgurnus anguillicaudatus (cantor) and anodonta woodiana (lea) in china, with descriptions of two new species of trichodina ehrenberg, 1838. | during parasitological surveys in chongqing, china, three trichodinids infecting a freshwater fish, misgurnus anguillicaudatus (cantor), and a mollusc, anodonta woodiana (lea), were investigated. two of these species were found to be new. trichodina lechriodentata n. sp., from the fish, was identified by its small-sized body and irregularly rectangular blade, while t. rara n. sp., from the mollusc, is characterised by its overall dimensions, denticle morphology and the presence of a white speckl ... | 2007 | 17294258 |
| biofilms coating schoenoplectus californicus as indicators of water quality in the río de la plata estuary (argentina). | community composition, structure, biomass and tolerance to pollution of biofilms growing on schoenoplectus californicus were assessed, together with physico-chemical parameters of the water, to evaluate their usefulness as water quality indicators along the argentinian shore of the freshwater zone of the río de la plata estuary. monthly sampling was carried out at three sites, one of which, located in a nature reserve, was considered as the reference site while the others were affected by sewage ... | 2007 | 17294281 |
| antigenic variation in ciliates: antigen structure, function, expression. | in the past decades, the major focus of antigen variation research has been on parasitic protists. however, antigenic variation occurs also in free-living protists. the antigenic systems of the ciliates paramecium and tetrahymena have been studied for more than 100 yr. in spite of different life strategies and distant phylogenetic relationships of free-living ciliates and parasitic protists, their antigenic systems have features in common, such as the presence of repeated protein motifs and mult ... | 2007 | 17300509 |
| molecular phylogeny of stentor (ciliophora: heterotrichea) based on small subunit ribosomal rna sequences. | to determine the phylogenetic position of stentor within the class heterotrichea, the complete small subunit rrna genes of three stentor species, namely stentor polymorphus, stentor coeruleus, and stentor roeseli, were sequenced and used to construct phylogenetic trees using the maximum parsimony, neighbor joining, and bayesian analysis. with all phylogenetic methods, the genus stentor was monophyletic, with s. roeseli branching basally. | 2007 | 17300519 |
| comparing the distribution of ciliate plankton in inner and outer areas of a harbor divided by an artificial breakwater. | the distribution of ciliate plankton was compared between inner and outer areas of a harbor divided by an artificial breakwater in kuryongpo, on the eastern coast of korea, from february 2001 to october 2003. less dissolved oxygen and higher concentrations of nitrogenous nutrients and phosphate were observed in the inner area. the abundance of oligotrich ciliates peaked in february 2001, when nanoflagellates bloomed in the inner area. the photosynthetic ciliate mesodinium rubrum showed differing ... | 2007 | 17300835 |
| local adaptation enhances seedling recruitment along an altitudinal gradient in a high mountain mediterranean plant. | germination and seedling establishment, which are critical stages in the regeneration process of plant populations, may be subjected to natural selection and adaptive evolution. the aims of this work were to assess the main limitations on offspring performance of silene ciliata, a high mountain mediterranean plant, and to test whether local adaptation at small spatial scales has a significant effect on the success of establishment. | 2007 | 17307775 |
| ciliate biogeography in antarctic and arctic freshwater ecosystems: endemism or global distribution of species? | ciliate diversity was investigated in situ in freshwater ecosystems of the maritime (south shetland islands, mainly livingston island, 63 degrees s) and continental antarctic (victoria land, 75 degrees s), and the high arctic (svalbard, 79 degrees n). in total, 334 species from 117 genera were identified in both polar regions, i.e. 210 spp. (98 genera) in the arctic, 120 spp. (73 genera) in the maritime and 59 spp. (41 genera) in the continental antarctic. forty-four species (13% of all species) ... | 2007 | 17313584 |
| evidence for local ciliate endemism in an alpine anoxic lake. | despite its long history, biogeography has received relatively little attention within the field of microbial ecology. consequently, a fierce debate rages whether protists inhabit restricted geographic areas (endemism hypothesis) or are globally dispersed (ubiquitous dispersal hypothesis). the data presented in this article support the endemism hypothesis. we succeeded in isolating an oligohymenophorean ciliate from a microbial mat in a meromictic anoxic alpine lake (alatsee) in germany. the cil ... | 2007 | 17323118 |
| miamiensis avidus (ciliophora: scuticociliatida) causes systemic infection of olive flounder paralichthys olivaceus and is a senior synonym of philasterides dicentrarchi. | the scuticociliate miamiensis avidus was isolated from olive flounder paralichthys olivaceus showing typical symptoms of ulceration and hemorrhages in skeletal muscle and fins. in an infection experiment, olive flounder (mean length: 14.9 cm; mean weight: 26.8 g) were immersion challenged with 2.0 x 10(3), 2.0 x 10(4) and 2.0 x 10(5) ciliates ml-1 of the cloned ys1 strain of m. avidus. cumulative mortalities were 85% in the 2.0 x 10(3) cells ml-1 treatment group and 100% in the other 2 infection ... | 2007 | 17330742 |
| effects of experimental lead pollution on the microbial communities associated with sphagnum fallax (bryophyta). | ecotoxicological studies usually focus on single microbial species under controlled conditions. as a result, little is known about the responses of different microbial functional groups or individual species to stresses. in an aim to assess the response of complex microbial communities to pollution in their natural habitat, we studied the effect of a simulated lead pollution on the microbial community (bacteria, cyanobacteria, protists, fungi, and micrometazoa) living on sphagnum fallax. mosses ... | 2007 | 17345137 |
| trophic interactions within the microbial food web in a tropical floodplain lake (laguna bufeos, bolivia). | whether the primary role of bacterioplankton is to act as "remineralizers" of nutrients or as direct nutritional source for higher trophic levels will depend on factors controlling their production and abundance. in tropical lakes, low nutrient concentration is probably the main factor limiting bacterial growth, while grazing by microzooplankton is generally assumed to be the main loss factor for bacteria. bottom-up and top-down regulation of microbial abundance was studied in six nutrient limit ... | 2005 | 17354422 |
| comparison of microfauna communities in full scale subsurface flow constructed wetlands used as secondary and tertiary treatment. | in order to evaluate the microfauna composition and distribution in two horizontal subsurface flow constructed wetlands used as secondary and tertiary treatment a full-scale wastewater treatment plant was monitored during five months. results indicate that total microfauna abundance in the wetland treating primary influents is around five times higher than that found in the wetland treating secondary influents. ciliated protozoa and microflagellates are the most important microfauna groups in bo ... | 2007 | 17360022 |
| origin and distribution of calvin cycle fructose and sedoheptulose bisphosphatases in plantae and complex algae: a single secondary origin of complex red plastids and subsequent propagation via tertiary endosymbioses. | sedoheptulose-1,7-bisphosphatase (sbpase) and fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase (fbpase) are essential nuclear-encoded enzymes involved in land plant calvin cycle and gluconeogenesis. in this study, we cloned seven sbp and seven fbp cdnas/genes and established sequences from all lineages of photosynthetic eukaryotes, in order to investigate their origin and evolution. our data are best explained by a single recruitment of plastid-targeted sbp in plantae after primary endosymbiosis and a further distri ... | 2007 | 17368985 |
| isolation and characterization of a paramecium cdna clone encoding a putative serine/threonine protein kinase. | mitogen-activated protein (map) kinases, a closely related family of protein kinases, are involved in cell cycle regulation and differentiation in yeast and human cells. they have not been documented in ciliates. we used pcr to amplify dna sequences of a ciliated protozoan--paramecium caudatum--using primers corresponding to amino acid sequences that are common to map kinases. we isolated and sequenced one putative map kinase-like serine/threonine kinase cdna from p. caudatum. this cdna, called ... | 2007 | 17375362 |
| culture of the histophagous ciliate philasterides dicentrarchi (ciliophora: scuticociliatia) in fish tissues. | | 2007 | 17394526 |
| flow cytometry assessment of cytotoxicity and reactive oxygen species generation by single and binary mixtures of cadmium, zinc and copper on populations of the ciliated protozoan tetrahymena thermophila. | in the present study, we have assessed by flow cytometry, the cytotoxicity of the heavy metals cd, zn and cu on populations of the ciliated protozoan tetrahymena thermophila. the obtained lc(50) for these metals was estimated as 0.195mgcdl(-1), 3.58mgznl(-1) and 0.47mgcul(-1), respectively. as a result, the toxicity rank for this eukaryotic microorganism is cd>cu>>zn. using the same methodology and the concentration addition approach, the toxicity of binary mixtures of these metals was evaluated ... | 2007 | 17397902 |
| morphogenesis of the freshwater ciliate neokeronopsis spectabilis (kahl 1932) warren et al., 2002, based on a china population (ciliophora: urostylidae). | the morphogenesis of the stichotrichous ciliate, neokeronopsis spectabilis, collected from a freshwater pond near harbin, north china, was observed following protargol impregnation. the overall morphogenetic events are characterized by: (1) the new oral primordium originates in association with the transverse cirri; (2) the proter's undulating membrane anlage is formed following the dedifferentiation of the parental endoral and paroral membranes, while the old adoral zone of membranelles is reta ... | 2007 | 17403159 |
| phylogeny of the stichotrichia (ciliophora; spirotrichea) reconstructed with nuclear small subunit rrna gene sequences: discrepancies and accordances with morphological data. | the stichotrichia, known as an especially various and taxonomically difficult group, were intensely studied with morphological, morphogenetic, and molecular methods in the last years. nevertheless, a consistent classification is lacking and several important questions about the phylogenetic relationships within this group remain unsolved. in order to gain deeper insights into these relationships, the nuclear small subunit rrna genes of seven species of the stichotrichia, representatives of the f ... | 2007 | 17403161 |
| seasonal variations in planktonic community structure and production in an atlantic coastal pond: the importance of nanoflagellates. | the structure and summertime production of planktonic communities and the role of nondiatom planktonic cells were studied in coastal ponds, which are areas traditionally used for fattening and greening table-sized oysters. the abundance and biomass of nano-microplanktonic protists were determined at weekly intervals between february 1998 and february 1999 in a coastal pond without oysters in the french atlantic coast near la rochelle. the production of these microbiotas was determined in the sum ... | 2007 | 17404788 |
| [structural-functional organization of the adenylyl cyclases in unicellular eukaryotes and molecular mechanisms of its regulation]. | at the present time, adenylyl cyclases (acs)--the enzymes, catalyzing the formation of second messenger camp, were found in yeasts and related fungi, amoeba dictyostelium discoideum, flagellates, malaria plasmodium, ciliates. however, structural-functional organization of the acs and molecular mechanisms of its regulation are different to great extent. the scores of structurally related acs, one time penetrating the membrane and possessing the receptor function, were identified in flagellates. t ... | 2007 | 17432594 |
| [the influence of the egf on proliferative signal transduction in ciliate tetrahymena pyriformis]. | it has been shown that the transduction of the proliferative signal induced by egf in ciliata tetrahymena pyriformis cells is not connected with autophosphorylation of the receptor tyrosine kinases. the results obtained indicate that egf in ciliata cells initiates the mitogenic pathway including the membrane proteins of the tyrosine kinases-like type (without tyrosine phosphorylation sites), adenylate cyclase, tyrosine- and ca2+ -dependent erk-like kinases. | 2007 | 17432601 |
| evolution of the glucose-6-phosphate isomerase: the plasticity of primary metabolism in photosynthetic eukaryotes. | glucose-6-phosphate isomerase (gpi) has an essential function in both catabolic glycolysis and anabolic gluconeogenesis and is universally distributed among eukaryotes, bacteria, and some archaea. in addition to the cytosolic gpi, land plant chloroplasts harbor a nuclear encoded isoenzyme of cyanobacterial origin that is indispensable for the oxidative pentose phosphate pathway (oppp) and plastid starch accumulation. we established 12 new gpi sequences from rhodophytes, the glaucophyte cyanophor ... | 2007 | 17443012 |
| radial spoke protein 44 (human meichroacidin) is an axonemal alloantigen of sperm and cilia. | to identify novel sperm alloantigens relevant to immune infertility, sera from infertile men containing antisperm antibodies (asa) were employed on 2-d immunoblots of human sperm proteins. an immunoreactive protein spot (mw: 44 kda, pi: 4.5) was microsequenced and the related cdna was cloned yielding a 309 amino acid sequence corresponding to a gene currently annotated in genbank as tsga2 homolog (mouse) to signify 'testis specific gene a2'. in genbank the protein deduced from this gene is curre ... | 2007 | 17451891 |
| [blooms of pseudo-nitzschia spp. (bacillariophyceae) and other phytoplankton species at bahía de mazatlán, méxico]. | observations on microplankton in the autumn of 1996 revealed the existence of high densities of pseudo-nitzschia spp. a similar phenomenon was found in november 1998 and november 1999 and a month later it shifted to the southern mazatlán bay while in california, usa, incidents of the poisoning of sea mammals were being recorded; this also happened on the mexican pacific coasts from january to march. water samples collected at surface (<0.5 m deep) and subsurface (10 m deep) monthly, from novembe ... | 2004 | 17465119 |
| parasite fauna of bream abramis brama and roach rutilus rutilus from a man-made waterway and a freshwater habitat in northern germany. | fifty specimens each of bream abramis brama and roach rutilus rutilus were examined for metazoan parasite fauna and trichodinid ciliates; 25 specimens of each species were collected from the kiel canal, a man-made waterway, and a nearby freshwater lake, the dieksee. this is the first detailed parasitological examination of a. brama and r. rutilus at these locations: 30 parasite species were found, comprising 4 protozoans, 4 myxozoans, 5 digeneans, 3 monogeneans, 2 cestodes, 6 nematodes, 2 acanth ... | 2007 | 17465307 |
| scuticociliate infection and pathology in cultured turbot scophthalmus maximus from the north of portugal. | during the years 2004 and 2005 high mortalities in turbot scophthalmus maximus (l.) from a fish farm in the north of portugal were observed. moribund fish showed darkening of the ventral skin, reddening of the fin bases and distended abdominal cavities caused by the accumulation of ascitic fluid. ciliates were detected in fresh mounts from skin, gill and ascitic fluid. histological examination revealed hyperplasia and necrosis of the gills, epidermis, dermis and muscular tissue. an inflammatory ... | 2007 | 17465310 |
| a biological sensor platform using a pneumatic-valve controlled microfluidic device containing tetrahymena pyriformis. | in this study, we introduce a microfluidic device equipped with pneumatically actuated valves, generating a linear gradient of chemoeffectors to quantify the chemotactic response of tetrahymena pyriformis, a freshwater ciliate. the microfluidic device was fabricated from an elastomer, poly(dimethylsiloxane) (pdms), using multi-layer soft lithography. the components of the device include electronically controlled pneumatic microvalves, microchannels and microchambers. the linear gradient of the c ... | 2007 | 17476385 |
| microscopical observations on four marine dysteria species (ciliophora, cyrtophorida). | four interesting strains of marine ciliates belonging to the genus dysteria, collected from the coastal area of qingdao, china, were investigated using living observations and silver impregnation methods. new data are supplied in redefinitions of three poorly known species, all of which had two contractile vacuoles. d. crassipes claparède and lachmann, 1859 has a rectangular body about 65 x 35 microm in vivo, with a podite subcaudal on the ventral side and a dorsal spine on some specimens; it ha ... | 2007 | 17481866 |
| phylogenomic analysis supports the monophyly of cryptophytes and haptophytes and the association of rhizaria with chromalveolates. | here we use phylogenomics with expressed sequence tag (est) data from the ecologically important coccolithophore-forming alga emiliania huxleyi and the plastid-lacking cryptophyte goniomonas cf. pacifica to establish their phylogenetic positions in the eukaryotic tree. haptophytes and cryptophytes are members of the putative eukaryotic supergroup chromalveolata (chromists [cryptophytes, haptophytes, stramenopiles] and alveolates [apicomplexans, ciliates, and dinoflagellates]). the chromalveolate ... | 2007 | 17488740 |
| short-term variations of virus-like particles in a tropical lake: relationship with microbial communities (bacteria, ciliates and flagellates). | the short-term dynamics of virus-like particles (vlps) abundance, bacterioplankton, ciliates and flagellates were analyzed in a small tropical lake, during a rainy day (june 9-10, 2003) and a dry day (february 18-19, 2004), with intervals of 3h between the samplings. frequent sampling in intervals of 15min were conducted. during the rainy day, the vlp mean abundance was 7.0x108ml(-1) and bacterial density was 5.75 x 107 ml(-1). during the dry day, vlp and bacterial mean were 5.78 x 108 and 4.1 x ... | 2009 | 17490869 |
| anaerobic protozoa and their growth in biomethanation systems. | this study was to investigate growth of protozoa and its influence on biodegradation in anaerobic treatment systems. it was done by specifically controlling and monitoring growth of protozoa versus degradation in continuous stirred anaerobic reactors and batch anaerobic reactors. occurrence of a diverse protozoa population such as the ciliates, prorodon, vorticella, cyclidium, spathidium, loxodes, metopus were observed in stable anaerobic systems and the flagellates, rhynchomonas, naeglaria, amo ... | 2008 | 17492357 |
| microfungi associated with abies needles and betula leaf litter in a subalpine coniferous forest. | we investigated microfungal assemblages on leaf litter within a subalpine forest in central japan and their variation with season, litter depth, and litter species. microfungal assemblages were compared for abies needles and betula leaf litter collected from litter and fermentation layers of the forest floor during the growing season in spring, summer, and autumn. a total of 35 and 42 species were isolated from abies needles and betula leaf litter, respectively. the observed variation in microfu ... | 2007 | 17496944 |
| infection of algae-free climacostomum virens with symbiotic chlorella sp. isolated from algae-containing c. virens. | the ciliate climacostomum virens normally contains algae as symbionts in its cytoplasm and retains them over many generations. an aposymbiotic strain of c. virens which cannot re-establish a new symbiotic association by ingestion of algae derived from green climacostomum was recently isolated in our laboratory. results of infection experiments showed that all newly ingested, potentially symbiotic algae were digested in food vacuoles. to clarify whether these ciliates have completely lost their a ... | 2007 | 17498933 |
| the bacterivory of interstitial ciliates in association with bacterial biomass and production in the hyporheic zone of a lowland stream. | rates of bacteria ingestion by interstitial ciliates were estimated and compared to bacterial biomass and production. investigation was carried out in the hyporheic zone of a lowland stream. fish was applied to quantitatively determine bacteria within the ciliate's food vacuoles. to estimate bacteria ingestion rates using fish, we had to strike a new path. when numbers of bacteria in the food vacuoles remains constant with time (bacterial digestion and ingestion are at equilibrium), ingestion ra ... | 2007 | 17506825 |
| description of two new marine pleurostomatid ciliates, loxophyllum choii nov. spec. and l. shini nov. spec. (ciliophora, pleurostomatida) from china. | the morphology and infraciliature of two pleurostomatid ciliates, loxophyllum choii nov. spec. and l. shini nov. spec., collected from inshore waters and a shrimp-culturing pond near qingdao (tsingtao), china, were investigated using live observations and the protargol-impregnation method. l. choii is distinguished from its congeners by the presence of conspicuous warts and prominent spines along the dorsal margin. l. shini is identified by a combination of characters including the small body si ... | 2007 | 17513095 |
| description of a mirror-image doublet from a brazilian strain of gastrostyla setifera (engelmann, 1862) kent, 1882 (ciliophora: stichotrichia). | the present work describes a mirror-image doublet morph found in a brazilian strain of the stichotrich ciliate gastrostyla setifera (engelmann, 1862) kent, 1882, obtained from a sample of water and sediment from an urban freshwater stream in the city of juiz de fora (minas gerais, brazil). the doublet measured 63 x 49 microm, and had two components where the right one has upside-down arranged adoral membranelles with a set of small oblique membranelles at its proximal (posterior) end. the fronto ... | 2007 | 17524631 |
| grazing protozoa and the evolution of the escherichia coli o157:h7 shiga toxin-encoding prophage. | humans play little role in the epidemiology of escherichia coli o157:h7, a commensal bacterium of cattle. why then does e. coli o157:h7 code for virulence determinants, like the shiga toxins (stxs), responsible for the morbidity and mortality of colonized humans? one possibility is that the virulence of these bacteria to humans is coincidental and these virulence factors evolved for and are maintained for other roles they play in the ecology of these bacteria. here, we test the hypothesis that t ... | 2007 | 17535798 |
| variation in macronuclear genome content of three ciliates with extensive chromosomal fragmentation: a preliminary analysis. | the genome architecture of ciliates, including features such as nuclear dualism and large-scale genome rearrangements, impacts gene and genome evolution in these organisms. to better understand the structure of macronuclear chromosomes in ciliates with extensively processed chromosomes, a sample of complete macronuclear chromosomes was sequenced from three ciliate species: metopus es (class [cl]: armophorea), nyctotherus ovalis (cl: armophorea), and chilodonella uncinata (cl: phyllopharyngea). b ... | 2007 | 17552979 |
| micronuclear and macronuclear forms of beta-tubulin genes in the ciliate chilodonella uncinata reveal insights into genome processing and protein evolution. | chilodonella uncinata, like all ciliates, contains two distinct nuclei in every cell: a germline micronucleus and a somatic macronucleus. during development of the macronucleus from a zygotic nucleus, the genome is processed in several ways, including elimination of internal sequences. in this study, we analyze micronuclear and macronuclear copies of beta-tubulin in c. uncinata and find at least four divergent paralogs of beta-tubulin in the macronucleus. we characterize the micronuclear version ... | 2007 | 17552983 |
| redescriptions of two marine hypotrichous ciliates, diophrys irmgard and d. hystrix (ciliophora, euplotida), with a brief revision of the genus diophrys. | two insufficiently described marine euplotids, diophrys irmgard mansfeld (1923) and diophrys hystrix buddenbrock (1920), found in coastal waters near qingdao, china, were reinvestigated with emphasis on their living morphology and infraciliature. improved diagnoses and redescriptions are supplied for both organisms. critical redefinitions of nine morphotypes are presented and the validities of the nominal species are discussed and briefly revised. following curds and wu (1983), and based on data ... | 2007 | 17552984 |
| molecular phylogenetics of subclass peritrichia (ciliophora: oligohymenophorea) based on expanded analyses of 18s rrna sequences. | phylogenetic relationships among peritrich ciliates remain unclear in spite of recent progress. to expand the analyses performed in previous studies, and to statistically test hypotheses of monophyly, we analyzed a broad sample of 18s rrna sequences (including 15 peritrich genera), applying a conservative alignment strategy and several phylogenetic approaches. the main results are that: (i) the monophyly of peritrichia cannot be rejected; (ii) the two main clades of sessilida do not correspond t ... | 2007 | 17552986 |
| morphological descriptions of new and little-known benthic ciliates from ganghwa tidal flat, korea. | ciliates are highly diverse in the benthos where there are rare species to be unrevealed and described. by isolating species during successive and diversified cultivations, we discovered several new and interesting taxa from the top layer sediment of a muddy site in the ganghwa tidal flat. these include three new species spirodysteria ganghwaensis n. sp., uronemella parafilificum n. sp., zosterodasys minuta n. sp., and one poorly known form loxophyllum chaetonotumborror 1965. the morphology of l ... | 2007 | 17552987 |
| a molecular phylogenetic investigation of opisthonecta and related genera (ciliophora, peritrichia, sessilida). | the gene encoding 18s small subunit ribosomal rna (ssu rrna) was sequenced in the sessiline peritrichs opisthonecta minima and opisthonecta matiensis, whose free-swimming, paedomorphic trophonts resemble telotrochs. using these new sequences, phylogenetic trees were constructed with four different methods to test a previously published association between opisthonecta henneguyi and members of the families vorticellidae and astylozoidae. all trees had similar topologies, with o. minima, o. henneg ... | 2007 | 17552988 |
| the biodiversity and ecology of antarctic lakes: models for evolution. | antarctic lakes are characterised by simplified, truncated food webs. the lakes range from freshwater to hypersaline with a continuum of physical and chemical conditions that offer a natural laboratory in which to study evolution. molecular studies on antarctic lake communities are still in their infancy, but there is clear evidence from some taxonomic groups, for example the cyanobacteria, that there is endemicity. moreover, many of the bacteria have considerable potential as sources of novel b ... | 2007 | 17553775 |
| effects of particulate and soluble substrates on microfauna populations and treatment efficiency in activated sludge systems. | to determine the effects of particulate and soluble compounds on microfauna populations and treatment efficiency in activated sludge systems, two experimental wastewater treatment plants were set up and evaluated for a period of five months. the plants were fed with pre-flocculated domestic sewage enriched with starch or glucose as model substrates of particulate and soluble organic matter, respectively. it was observed that the starch-enriched system presented lower abundance of filamentous bac ... | 2007 | 17561228 |
| chemical cues induce consumer-specific defenses in a bloom-forming marine phytoplankton. | blooms of the phytoplankton phaeocystis can comprise 85% of total production and generate major biogeochemical signals across broad oceanic regions. the success of phaeocystis may result from its ability to change size by many orders of magnitude when it shifts from small cells of 4-6 microm to large colonies of up to 30,000 microm in diameter. single cells are consumed by ciliates but not copepods, whereas colonies are consumed by copepods but not ciliates. we demonstrate that chemical cues ass ... | 2007 | 17563379 |
| siderin from toona ciliata (meliaceae) as photosystem ii inhibitor on spinach thylakoids. | four natural products were isolated from plants of the rutaceae and meliaceae families and their effect on photosynthesis was tested. siderin (1) inhibited both atp synthesis and electron flow (basal, phosphorylating, and uncoupled) from water to methylviologen (mv); therefore, it acts as hill reaction inhibitor in freshly lysed spinach thylakoids. natural products 2-4 were inactive. secondary metabolite 1 did not inhibit psi electron transport. it inhibits partial reactions of psii electron flo ... | 2007 | 17568558 |
| different modes of stop codon restriction by the stylonychia and paramecium erf1 translation termination factors. | in universal-code eukaryotes, a single-translation termination factor, eukaryote class-1 polypeptide release factor (erf1), decodes the three stop codons: uaa, uag, and uga. in some ciliates, like stylonychia and paramecium, erf1s exhibit uga-only decoding specificity, whereas uag and uaa are reassigned as sense codons. because variant-code ciliates may have evolved from universal-code ancestor(s), structural features should exist in ciliate erf1s that restrict their stop codon recognition. in o ... | 2007 | 17573528 |
| planktonic microbial community responses to added copper. | it is generally agreed that autotrophic organisms and especially phytoplanktonic species can be harmed by copper through its effect on photosystem. however, the impact of copper on other components of the pelagic food web, such as the microbial loop (autotrophic and heterotrophic picoplankton, pigmented and non-pigmented flagellates and ciliates) has received little attention. indoor experiments were conducted to evaluate the direct and indirect effects of copper, supplied in the range of concen ... | 2007 | 17582517 |
| classification of the peritrich ciliate opisthonecta matiensis (martín-cereceda et al. 1999) as telotrochidium matiense nov. comb., based on new observations and ssu rdna phylogeny. | new observations on opisthonecta matiensis martín-cereceda et al. [1999. description of opisthonecta matiensis n. sp. (protozoa, ciliophora), a new peritrich ciliate from wastewater. j. eukaryot. microbiol. 46, 283-289] especially the lack of an epistomial membrane, reveal that the species does not belong to the genus opisthonecta, but to telotrochidium, the other genus within the family opisthonectidae foissner, 1975. the contractile vacuole and the cytopyge are on the dorsal wall of the vestib ... | 2007 | 17583484 |