Unicellular versus Filamentous: The Glacial Alga <i>Ancylonema alaskana</i> comb. et stat. nov. and Its Ecophysiological Relatedness to <i>Ancylonema nordenskioeldii</i> (Zygnematophyceae, Streptophyta).

ABSTRACT: Melting polar and alpine ice surfaces frequently exhibit blooms of dark pigmented algae. These microbial extremophiles significantly reduce the surface albedo of glaciers, thus accelerating melt rates. However, the ecology, physiology and taxonomy of cryoflora are not yet fully understood. Here, a Swiss and an Austrian glacier dominated either by filamentous Ancylonema nordenskioeldii or unicellular Mesotaenium berggrenii var. alaskanum, were sampled. Molecular analysis showed that both species are closely related, sharing identical chloroplast morphologies (parietal-lobed for Ancylonema vs. axial plate-like for Mesotaenium sensu stricto), thus the unicellular species was renamed Ancylonema alaskana. Moreover, an ecophysiological comparison of the

SUBMITTER: Prochazkova L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8161032 | biostudies-literature | 2021 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature