| Abstract Detail
Mycological Section Reynolds, Nicole [1], Tretter, Eric D. [1], Guardia-Valle, Laia [2], Cafaro, Matias J. [3], White, Merlin [1]. Trichomycetes in transition: Phylogenetics and evolutionary trends within the protist order Eccrinida. Once classified within the Trichomycetes due to their thallus-like growth form and ecological similarity, the endobiont groups Eccrinales and Amoebidiales (“protist trichos”) are now placed within the protist class Mesomycetozoea (=Ichthyosporea), order Eccrinida. Indeed, species of Paramoebidium (amoebidiales) often coinhabit the hindguts of the same hosts as their fungal (Harpellales) counterparts. Members of the Mesomycetozoea branch near the divergence of animals and fungi as inferred by multigene phylogenies, and many members exhibit intermediate morphological forms. Due, in part, to the relatively recent establishment of this group (first recognized in 1996), much remains to be revealed about the diversity, life history, and ecological roles of its species. All described taxa are found in symbiotic association with a diverse range of hosts, from vertebrates to peanut worms and mollusks. The protist trichos, in terms of genera, live almost exclusively as commensals in the digestive tract of their arthropod hosts, which include crabs, shrimps, millipedes, and immature aquatic insects, but their putative closest relative (Ichthyophonus) is a parasite of fish. Molecular evidence has identified the protist trichos as ichthyophonids, but taxon sampling is sparse and evaluation of their phenotypic traits in the context of this new classification is lacking. Here we present an expanded phylogeny using additional taxon sampling and 18S and 28S gene data. Preliminary ancestral state reconstructions on this updated phylogeny are also introduced as an illustration of life history tendencies across the order. Our findings suggest that members of the amoebidiales are not monophyletic, with a division between the two genera, Amoebidium and Paramoebidium. Additionally, there is evidence of host switching among the eccrinales and possible patterns of host specificity within the eccrinales and Paramoebidium. As observed in previous studies, gross morphological features heretofore used for species delineation appear uninformative, stressing the need for new ultrastructural and life history analyses to generate a set of phylogenetically informative characters.
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1 - Boise State University, Department of Biological Sciences, 1910 University Drive, Boise, ID, 83725, USA
2 - Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, Unitat de Botanica, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, 08193, Spain
3 - University of Puerto Rico, Departmento de Biologia, Mayagüez, PR, 00680, USA
Keywords:
none specified
Presentation Type: Oral Paper:Papers for Sections
Session: 67
Location: Salon 1/The Shaw Conference Centre
Date: Wednesday, July 29th, 2015
Time: 2:30 PM
Number: 67005
Abstract ID:1268
Candidate for Awards:MSA Best Oral Presentation Award by a Graduate Student |
