The Great Barrier Reef, a center for Pelagophyceae (Heterokontophyta) diversity, including a new genus and seven new species.

ABSTRACT: The pelagophytes are a morphologically diverse class of marine heterokont algae defined by deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) gene sequences, the presence of a multilayered, perforated theca (PT), and the novel role of the Golgi apparatus in the formation and secretion of the PT, as well as materials for the synthesis of the outer extracellular layers (e.g., cell walls and mucilage). We established clonal cultures of sand-dwelling pelagophytes collected from intertidal and subtidal locations at Heron Island on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR), Australia, and established phylogenetic trees based on nuclear 18S rDNA and plastid rbcL, psaA, psaB, psbA, and psbC gene sequences that led to the discovery of seven new species and several interesting range extensions. The new genus and species, Revolvomonas

SUBMITTER: Wetherbee R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12168098 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature