title: The phylogenetic position of Kofoidia loriculata (Parabasalia) and its implications for the evolution of the Cristamonadea.
abstract: Kofoidia loriculata is a parabasalid symbiont inhabiting the hindgut of the lower termite Paraneotermes simplicicornis. It was initially described as a lophomonad due to its apical tuft of multiple flagella that disintegrate during cell division, but its phylogenetic relationships have not been investigated using molecular evidence. From single cell isolations, we sequenced the small subunit rRNA gene and determined that K. loriculata falls within the Cristamonadea, but is unrelated to other lophomonads. This analysis further demonstrates the polyphyly of the lophomonads and the necessity to re-assess the morphological and cellular evolution of the Cristamonadea.
authors.affiliation: Department of Botany, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research Program in Integrated Microbial Biodiversity, University of British Columbia, 3529-6270 University Blvd., Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
authors.forename: Vera
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Tai
authors.forename: Gillian H
authors.initials: GH
authors.lastname: Gile
authors.forename: Jingwen
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pan
authors.forename: Erick R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: James
authors.forename: Kevin J
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Carpenter
authors.forename: Rudolf H
authors.initials: RH
authors.lastname: Scheffrahn
authors.forename: Patrick J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Keeling
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D005075:Biological Evolution; D020459:Genes, rRNA; D020049:Isoptera; D056900:Parabasalidea / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics; D010802:Phylogeny; D012335:RNA, Ribosomal / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D012335:RNA, Ribosomal
keywords: 18S rRNA; Kofoidiidae; Paraneotermes simplicicornis; cristamonad; lophomonad; parabasalid; symbiont; termite hindgut