Weibo Song

Taxonomische untersuchungen an marinen ciliaten aus China mit beschreibungen von zwei neuen arten, Strombidium globosaneum nov. spec. and S. platum nov. spec. (Protozoa, Ciliophora)

Summary The morphology and taxonomy of 15 marine ciliates (Chaenea vorax, Lacrymaria marinum*, Dysteria brasiliensis*, Uronema marinum*, Homalogastra binucleata, Fabrea salina, Strombidium platum nov. spec., Strombidium globosaneum nov. spec., Strombidium styliferum*, Euplotes charon*, Euplotes vannus, Euplotes rariseta*, Diophrys scutum*, Diophrys oligothrix*, Diophrys appendiculata*) from China were investigated. Nine species (marked with *) were recorded from this area for the first time. The infraciliature and the silverline system of all species reported here were investigated using various silver impregnation methods and, if possible, biometrically described. Two new species are described: Strombidium platum nov. spec.: Oblong to elliptical marine Strombidium with conspicuous collar and long-oval macronucleus; size in vivo 70-100x40-60 µm; dorso-ventrally 1:2 flattened; 8-11 buccal and 15-18 collar adoral membranelles, only one somatic kinety, extrusomes ca. 5 µm, irregularly arranged. Strombidium globosaneum nov. spec.: Colourless, small, ovoid-shaped marine Strombidium. Size in vivo 20-35×20-30 µm, 10-12 collar adoral membranelles, 5-6 buccal adoral membranelles; buccal lip inconspicuous, lorica absent.

Morphological Investigations on Some Free Living Ciliates (Protozoa, Ciliophora) from China Sea with Description of a New Hypotrichous Genus, Hemigastrostyla nov. gen.

Summary 2 heterotrichous and 9 hypotrichous ciliates including one new genus collected from the Yellow Sea and the Bohai Bay, north-eastern China are morphologically investigated based on living observations and using various silver impregnation methods: Protocruzia contrax Mansfeld , 1923; Condylostoma magnum Spiegel , 1926; Holosticha manca Kahl , 1932; Oxytricha saltans ( Cohn , 1866); Hemigastrostyla enigmatica ( Dragesco & Dragesco-Kerneis , 1986) nov. gen., nov. comb.; Uronychia setigera Calkins , 1902; Uronychia binucleata Young , 1922; Uronychia transfuga ( Muller , 1786); Euplotes minuta Yocum , 1930; Aspidisca steini ( Buddenbrock , 1920); Aspidisca leptaspis Fresenius , 1865. Morphological characteristics and taxonomic position of all known Uronychia-species are briefly compared and discussed. About 3 Protocruzia-, 5 Uronychia- and 12 Aspidisca-species are considered as junior synonyms according to the results of our current studies. The hypotrich, Hemigastrostyla nov. gen., might be assigned to the family Oxytrichidae. Diagnosis of this new genus: body slightly cephalized; mostly 8–10 frontal, 5 ventral and a few extra lateroventral cirri which possibly derive from the 6th (right-most) cirral anlage during morphogenesis; caudal cirri present. Marine or brackish water forms. It is recognised from other oxytrichids by the cephalized body shape and possessing extra lateroventral cirri right to the transverse ones.

Taxonomy, morphology and molecular systematics of a new oligotrich ciliate, Williophrya maedai gen. nov., sp. nov., with redescriptions of Strombidium basimorphum and Pseudotontonia simplicidens (Protozoa, Ciliophora, Oligotrichia)

The morphology and small subunit rRNA (SSrRNA) gene sequence of a marine oligotrich ciliate, Williophrya maedai gen. nov., sp. nov., are reported. The new genus Williophrya is characterized by the adoral zone with no differentiation of membranelles, and the reduced somatic ciliature which comprises a bipartite girdle kinety only. In addition, the in vivo morphologies of two other oligotrichs, namely Strombidium basimorphum Martin & Montagnes, 1993 and Pseudotontonia simplicidens (Lynn & Gilron, 1993) Agatha, 2004, are reported for the first time based on Chinese populations. Improved diagnoses of both species are supplied. The phylogenetic position of Williophrya maedai is investigated based on SSrRNA gene sequence data. These show that: (1) Williophrya maedai is most closely related to Strombidium purpureum and S. apolatum; (2) Williophrya is assigned to the family Strombidiidae although it has some unique morphological features regarding its oral and somatic ciliatures.

Morphogenesis of the marine ciliate Diophrys oligothrix Borror, 1965 during the cell division (protozoa, ciliophora, hypotrichida)

Summary Morphogenetic events during division of the marine hypotrichous ciliate Diophrys oligothrix were investigated by light microscopy on protargol impregnated specimens. The morphogenesis of both the ventral and dorsal infraciliature proceeds in a very similar way to that in D. scutum . The opisthe oral primordium (OP), which develops in a subsurface pouch, forms de novo anterior to the parental transverse cirri. Basal bodies formed in the OP field do not contribute to any other cirral anlagen. Only the rear part of the parental adorai zone of membranelles (AZM) is reorganized during the later morphogenetic process and then was inherited by the proter. Both the endoral and paroral membrane (UM) develop from an “extra” anlage which seems to derive from the posterior end of the reorganized AZM in the proter and from the oral primordium in the opisthe. All cirral anlagen form de novo and do not develop in association with any parental structures. Each of the 4 dorsal kineties evolves from a separate dorsal kinety anlage in both proter and opisthe. The replication band at the distal end of each macronucleus proceeds proximally and disappears as the two nuclear segments fuse. This investigation documents several ontogenetic differences among the species of the genus Diophrys . The morphogenetic process in our population differs from that in D. scutum in the position of the oral primordium which is distinctly anterior to the transverse cirri and between the marginal cirri, the reorganization of the parental AZM is limited merely to the last 1/3 of its length and is relatively inconspicuous. In contrast to the previous report, the origin of the UM and paroral cirrus in both proter and opisthe is apparently connected with the oral primordium (in opisthe) or reorganizing part of parental AZM and UM (in proter).

Morphology and Morphogenesis of Pseudoamphisiella lacazei (Maupas, 1883) Song, 1996 with Suggestion of Establishment of a New Family Pseudoamphisiellidae nov. fam. (Ciliophora, Hypotrichida)

Summary The morphology and morphogenesis of the hypotrichous ciliate Pseudoamphisiella lacazei ( Maupas , 1883) SONG , 1996 (formerly Holosficha lacazei Maupas , 1883) isolated from coastal waters of Qingdao (Tsingtao), People’s Republic of China are described using protargol silver impregnation. Improved diagnoses of the genus Pseudoamphisiella and of P. lacazei are presented. Some characters (the origin of the right marginal cirri and the absence of frontoterminal cirri) are sufficiently different from other hypotrichs to suggest the erection of a new family, Pseudoamphisiellidae, nov. fam. The morphogenetic investigation on P. lacazei shows that the numerous oblique frontoventral transverse (FVT) streaks generate only three rows of cirri: two ventral rows and a row of highly developed transverse cirri. Thus it has midventral rows which, nevertheless, occur in an unusual interphase pattern as two distinctly separate ventral ones. The right marginal row in both proter and opisthe originate, uniquely, from the last FVT-anlage. Generally, all anlagen develop de novo except those of the left marginal row and dorsal kineties, which derive from disaggregated parental cirri or kineties. The parental adoral membranelles and undulating membranes are completely renewed during the cell division. The caudal cirri, which develop from the posterior end of each dorsal kinety anlage, connect with the left and right marginal rows and are therefore very difficult to recognize in the interphase. The phylogenetic position of the new family is discussed but for the time being remains Hypotrichida incertae sedis .

Phylogeny of three choreotrich genera (Protozoa, Ciliophora, Spirotrichea), with morphological, morphogenetic and molecular investigations on three strobilidiid species

Liu, W., Yi, Z., Lin, X., Warren, A. & Song, W. (2012). Phylogeny of three choreotrich genera (Protozoa, Ciliophora, Spirotrichea), with morphological, morphogenetic and molecular investigations on three strobilidiid species. —Zoologica Scripta, 41, 417–434.

Morphology and morphogenesis of the marine ciliate Ponturostyla enigmatica (Dragesco & Dragesco-Kernéis, 1986) Jankowski, 1989 (Ciliophora, Hypotrichida, Oxytrichidae)

The morphology, infraciliature and morphogenetic events during binary division of the marine hypotrich ciliate, Ponturostyla enigmatica (Dragesco & Dragesco-Kerneis, 1986) Jankowski, 1989 collected from the coastal area near Qingdao (Tsingtao), China were investigated. This poorly-known species is characterized by: in vivo size of 130–280 × 50–90 μm, usually with 4 (3–7) macronuclear nodules; 5 to 9 marginal rows of cirri on each side; cortical granules in lines on the ventral surface, but irregularly scattered on the dorsal side; contractile vacuole in mid-body near left margin; 42–61 adoral membranelles; usually 4 complete and several shortened dorsal kineties; 2–3 dorsomarginal kineties; marine. Its morphogenetic processes exhibit the following details: 1) five frontoventral-transverse cirral anlagen together with the UM-anlage develop into 8 frontal, 5 ventral and 5 transverse cirri in the pattern of Oxytricha-Stylonychia ; 2) marginal rows derive from a single anlage-unit on each side in both dividers, which originates apokinetally to the right of the old structure, while all parental rows are morphogenetically inactive and gradually resorbed during the dividing process; 3) three left dorsal and one dorsomarginal anlagen are formed initially as two groups in both proter and opisthe giving rise to all dorsal kineties (the rest are formed by the fragmentation of these anlagen); 4) the old adoral zone of membranelles will be completely retained for the proter and 5) no caudal cirri are formed during morphogenesis. Based on the data obtained, new or improved diagnoses for Ponturostyla and related genera are supplied in the present paper, and a new combination is suggested: Ponturostyla grandis (Stein, 1859) nov. comb. (formerly Pleurotricha grandis Stein, 1859).

Three new entocommensal ciliates from digestive tract of sea urchins of the Weddell Sea, Antarctica (Protozoa, Ciliophora)

Abstract Three new entocommensal ciliates (Spirostrombidium echini sp. nov., Entodiscus pseudoechini sp. nov. and Cryptochilum antarcticum sp. nov.) from the digestive tract of sea urchins in Antarctica (Weddell Sea) were studied using protargol and silver nitrate impregnation methods. Based on our reinvestigations, improved diagnoses for the genera Entodiscus and Cryptochilum are provided. According to the general morphology, E. pseudoechini is recognized by a higher number of ciliary rows, the absence of a caudal cilium which is typically present for other congeners, and shortened somatic kineties direct to the ventral surface, of which the last somatic kinety does not pass through the caudal pole as in most other scuticociliates. C. antarcticum differs from the known congeners in its particularly high number of somatic kineties. S. echini is distinguished by the combination of habitat, body shape, structure of buccal apparatus and arrangement of somatic kineties.

Comparison of some closely-related Metanophrys-taxa with description of a new species Metanophrys similis nov. spec. (Ciliophora, Scuticociliatida)

The living morphology, infraciliature and silverline system of a marine scuticociliate Metanophrys similis nov. spec. have been observed and investigated. Based on both morphological and molecular biological data (using the random amplified polymorphic DNA fingerprinting method), several closely-related and easily confused taxa were compared. The diagnosis for this new taxon: slender marine Metanophrys with rounded cell ends and pre-equatorially positioned cytostome; in vivo 25–50 × 10–15 μm; 3-rowed membranelle 1 about as long as membranelle 2; paroral membrane extending anteriorly to about mid-level of membranelle 2; 11–12 somatic kineties; scutica with ca. 5–7 basal bodies arranged in a long line; extrusomes bar-like, aligned between somatic kineties; one caudal cilium and one macronucleus.

Observations on Morphogenesis in a marine ciliate Tachysoma ovata (Protozoa: Ciliophora: Hypotrichida)

Divisional morphogenesis of the marine hypotrichous ciliate, Tachysoma ovata was investigated based on protargol impregnated specimens. Its morphogenesis reveals the following peculiarities: (1) there is a definite period during which the anterior part of the newly formed adoral zone of membranelles (AZM) in the opisthe connects with the parental AZM which remains unchanged during the morphogenesis. (2) The anlagen of left and right marginal rows do not develop simultaneously. (3) The replication processes of macronuclear segments are not recognizable during cell division. It is likely that the replication takes place during the interphase. (4) The origin of the fronto-ventral-transverse (FVT) cirral anlagen in the opisthe is characteristic: in other Tachysoma spp. these primordia are generated either from differentiated parental ciliatures (or are orientated by pre-existent organelles), or by division of the proters FVT-cirral primordia. (5) The primordium of the undulating membranes in the proter always keeps the form of two streaks (so-called ‘semi-anlagen’). There is no conspicuous dedifferentiation or reorganization of the undulating membranes. A morphogenetic comparison with other species of this genus was carried out.