title: Morphology and Molecular Phylogeny of Three Cyrtophorid Ciliates (Protozoa, Ciliophora) from China, Including Two New Species, Chilodonella parauncinata sp. n. and Chlamydonella irregularis sp. n.
abstract: This study investigated the morphology and molecular characteristics of three interesting free-living cyrtophorid ciliates, including two new species, isolated from China: Chilodonella parauncinata sp. n. can be identified by its elongated body shape, with a sharp protrusion in the left anterior part, cell size ca. 60 × 25 μm in vivo, five right and 6-7 left kineties with kinetosomes densely arranged, and a curved cyrtos. Chlamydonella irregularis sp. n. differs from its congeners by the oval body shape, cell size 50-60 × 25-40 μm in vivo, irregular shape of macronucleus, 30-40 club-shaped ventral protuberances, and 17 somatic kineties. Two isolates of Chlamydonella derouxi Song, 2003, collected from an intertidal area in Shandong and a mangrove wetland in Guangdong respectively, correspond well with two previous descriptions, but differ in comprising more basal bodies in left and right equatorial fragments and in having more finger-like protuberances on the ventral side. Phylogenetic analyses based on the small subunit rRNA gene sequences showed that C. parauncinata sp. n. clustered with Chilodonella uncinata, but was a well-outlined species of the genus, and C. irregularis sp. n. and C. derouxi grouped in the family Lynchellidae with their congeners to form the monophyletic genus Chlamydonella.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Protozoology, Institute of Evolution & Marine Biodiversity, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, 266003, China.
authors.forename: Zhishuai
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Qu
authors.forename: Hongbo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Pan
authors.forename: Xiaozhong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.forename: Jiqiu
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Saleh A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Al-Farraj
authors.forename: Khaled A S
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Al-Rasheid
authors.forename: Zhenzhen
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Yi
mesh_terms: D002681:China; D016798:Ciliophora / Q000145:classification* / Q000166:cytology* / Q000235:genetics; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D004275:DNA, Ribosomal / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D004783:Environmental Microbiology; D008853:Microscopy; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D012337:RNA, Ribosomal, 18S / Q000235:genetics; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA
chemical_list: D004275:DNA, Ribosomal; D012337:RNA, Ribosomal, 18S
keywords: Chlamydodontida; ciliate; infraciliature; small subunit rRNA gene; taxonomy