• Animal Systematics, Evolution and Diversity
• /
• v.23 no.1
• /
• pp.1-7
• /
• 2007

Choanoflagellates were encountered in marine sediments of Gippsland Basin (Australia) and were classified into 8 species, 5 genera in 2 families. The species rarely found in this study were Acanthocorbis unguiculata, Acanthoeca spectabilis, Polyoeca dichotoma and Saepicula pulchra of the family Acanthoecidae; Salpingoeca amphoridium, Salpingoeca infusionum, Salpingoeca megacheila and Salpingoeca tuba of the family Salpingoecidae. Their descriptions were based on living specimens. Their morphological characters and geographic distribution are presented.

• ALGAE
• /
• v.35 no.1
• /
• pp.61-78
• /
• 2020

Species belonging to the dinoflagellate genus Prorocentrum are known to cause red tides or harmful algal blooms. To understand the dynamics of a Prorocentrum sp., its growth and mortality due to predation need to be assessed. However, there are only a few Prorocentrum spp. for which heterotrophic protist predators have been reported. We explored feeding by the common heterotrophic dinoflagellates Gyrodinium dominans, Oxyrrhis marina, Pfiesteria piscicida, Oblea rotunda, and Polykrikos kofoidii and the naked ciliate Strombidinopsis sp. (approx. 90 ㎛ cell length) on the planktonic species Prorocentrum triestinum, P. cordatum, P. donghaiense, P. rhathymum, and P. micans as well as the benthic species P. lima and P. hoffmannianum. All heterotrophic protists tested were able to feed on the planktonic prey species. However, O. marina and O. rotunda did not feed on P. lima and P. hoffmannianum, while G. dominans, P. kofoidii, and Strombidinopsis sp. did. The growth and ingestion rates of G. dominans and P. kofoidii on one of the seven Prorocentrum spp. were significantly different from those on other prey species. G. dominans showed the top three highest growth rates when it fed on P. triestinum, P. cordatum, and P. donghaiense, however, P. kofoidii had negative growth rates when fed on these three prey species. In contrast, P. kofoidii had a positive growth rate only when fed on P. hoffmannianum. This differential feeding on Prorocentrum spp. between G. dominans and P. kofoidii may provide different ecological niches and reduce competition between these two common heterotrophic protist predators.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
• /
• v.35 no.3
• /
• pp.215-226
• /
• 2017

A study on indigenous diatoms was carried out at 10 sites from May 2014 to December 2016 in marine and freshwater in Korea. Seventeen species of diatoms are new to Korea and they are divided into 3 classes, 4 subclasses, 10 orders, 14 families, and 16 genera. The nomenclatures, references, dimensions, specimens examined, local habitat, distribution in Korea, and photograph are reported here. Seventeen species found in marine, freshwater, and brackish water showed species-specific habitats.

• ALGAE
• /
• v.39 no.1
• /
• pp.51-56
• /
• 2024

The use of droplet digital polymerase chain reaction (ddPCR) has greatly improved the quantification of harmful protists, outperforming traditional methods like quantitative PCR. Notably, ddPCR provides enhanced consistency and reproducibility at it resists PCR inhibitors commonly found in environmental DNA samples. This study aimed to determine the most effective filter material for ddPCR protocols by assessing the reproducibility of species-specific gene copy numbers and filtration time across six filter types: cellulose acetate (CA), mixed cellulose ester (MCE), nylon (NY), polycarbonate (PC), polyethersulfone (PES), and polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF). The study used two species of Chattonella marina complexes as a case study. Filtration rates were slower for NY, PC, and PVDF filters. Moreover, MCE, NY, PES, and PVDF yielded lower DNA amounts than other filters. Importantly, the CA filter exhibited the lowest variance (38-39%) and the highest determination coefficients (R² = 0.92-0.96), indicating superior performance. These findings suggest that the CA filter is the most suitable for ddPCR quantification of marine protists, offering quick filtration and reliable reproducibility.

• Animal cells and systems
• /
• v.6 no.2
• /
• pp.125-143
• /
• 2002

Heterotrophic flagellates occurring in the marine sediments of Inchon and Ganghwa Island are reported. Fifty-six species from 38 genera were encountered in this survey and two new taxa were recorded: Cyranomonas australis sp. nov. and Gweamonas unicus sp. nov. There was little evidence for endemism because all flagellates including the two new taxa described here have been found from other habitats in Australia which are geographically remote from Korea. This study supports the model that free-living heterotrophic flagellates have a world-wide distribution.

• ALGAE
• /
• v.32 no.4
• /
• pp.309-324
• /
• 2017

Recently, the heterotrophic nanoflagellate Katablepharis japonica has been reported to feed on diverse red-tide species and contribute to the decline of red tides. However, if there are effective predators feeding on K. japonica, its effect on red tide dynamics may be reduced. To investigate potential effective protist predators of K. japonica, feeding by the engulfment-feeding heterotrophic dinoflagellates (HTDs) Oxyrrhis marina, Gyrodinium dominans, Gyrodinium moestrupii, Polykrikos kofoidii, and Noctiluca scintillans, the peduncle-feeding HTDs Luciella masanensis and Pfiesteria piscicida, the pallium-feeding HTD Oblea rotunda, and the naked ciliates Strombidium sp. (approximately $20{\mu}m$ in cell length), Pelagostrobilidium sp., and Miamiensis sp. on K. japonica was explored. We found that none of these heterotrophic protists fed on actively swimming cells of K. japonica. However, O. marina, G. dominans, L. masanensis, and P. piscicida were able to feed on heat-killed K. japonica. Thus, actively swimming behavior of K. japonica may affect feeding by these heterotrophic protists on K. japonica. To the contrary, K. japonica was able to feed on O. marina, P. kofoidii, O. rotunda, Miamiensis sp., Pelagostrobilidium sp., and Strombidium sp. However, the specific growth rates of O. marina did not differ significantly among nine different K. japonica concentrations. Thus, K. japonica may not affect growth of O. marina. Our findings suggest that the effect of predation by heterotrophic protists on K. japonica might be negligible, and thus, the effect of grazing by K. japonica on populations of red-tide species may not be reduced by mortality due to predation by protists.

• Animal Systematics, Evolution and Diversity
• /
• v.38 no.4
• /
• pp.226-237
• /
• 2022

Arcuospathidium is a haptorian ciliate genus composed of 18 species, and only one species has been reported in Korea. Here, we identify two unrecorded Arcuospathidium subspecies by morphological observation of both living and protargol-impregnated specimens with the small subunit ribosomal RNA (18S rRNA) gene sequence. These subspecies, Arcuospathidium cultriforme cultriforme (Penard, 1922) Foissner, 1984 and A. cultriforme scalpriforme (Kahl, 1930) Foissner, 2003, were isolated from various terrestrial habitats in July and August 2013, respectivley. Arcuospathidium cultriforme cultriforme is similar to A. cultriforme scalpriforme by a knife-shaped body, a twisted-shaped macronucleus, number of dorsal brushes, position of dorsal brushes, and shape of macronucleus but former mainly differs from the body length to oral bulge length ratio (27-38% vs. 41-53%), extrusome (one types vs. three types), cyst shape (roughly faceted wall vs. smooth surface and thin wall) and number of somatic kinety rows(18-30 vs. 30-44). Additionally, we analyzed the 18S rRNA gene sequences of two A. cultriforme subspecies and compared them with the sequences from GenBank to confirm their identification at the molecular level. As the results of genetic analysis, the 18S rRNA gene sequence of the Korean A. cultriforme cultriforme population is most similar to that of Austrian population. Also, the sequence of the Korean A. cultriforme scalpriforme population is most similar to that of another population with some nucleotide differences.

• ALGAE
• /
• v.38 no.4
• /
• pp.265-281
• /
• 2023

Hypoxia can indeed impact the survival of protists, which play a crucial role in marine ecosystems. To better understand the protistan community structure and species that can thrive in hypoxic waters, we collected samples from both the surface and bottom waters during the hypoxic period in Jinhae and Masan Bays and the non-hypoxic period in Jinhae Bay. Subsequently, we utilized metabarcoding techniques to identify the protistan species. During hypoxia, with dissolved oxygen concentrations of 0.8 mg L^-1 in Jinhae Bay and 1.8 mg L^-1 in Masan Bay within the bottom waters, the phylum Dinoflagellata exhibited the highest amplicon sequence variants richness among the identified protist phyla. Following the Dinoflagellata, Ochrophyta and Ciliophora also displayed notable presence. In hypoxic waters of Jinhae and Masan Bays, we identified a total of 36 dinoflagellate species that exhibited various trophic modes. These included one autotrophic species, 14 mixotrophic species, 9 phototrophic species with undetermined trophic modes (either autotrophic or mixotrophic), 2 kleptoplastidic species, and 10 heterotrophic species. Furthermore, the hypoxic bottom water exhibited a greater number of heterotrophic dinoflagellate species compared to the non-hypoxic surface water within the same water column or the non-hypoxic bottom water. Therefore, feeding by mixotrophic and heterotrophic dinoflagellates may be partially responsible for their dominance in terms of the number of species surviving in hypoxic waters. This study not only introduces the initial documentation of 26 dinoflagellate species surviving in hypoxic conditions but also establishes a foundation for a more comprehensive understanding of the ecophysiology of dinoflagellates in hypoxic marine environments.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
• /
• v.33 no.2
• /
• pp.148-152
• /
• 2015

Three marine heterotrophic flagellates from intertidal sediments of Gwang-Am beach and Garorim Bay, Korea were identified as Neometanema parovale Lee and Patterson 2014, Stephanopogon pattersoni Lee et al. 2014 and Thaumatomastix sp. These species are reported taxonomically for the first time from Korea, and are described with illustrations and micrographs. Diagnostics of these species are as follows. Neometanema parovale (Euglenozoa): size in vivo, $10{\sim}23{\mu}m\;long$ with 22 pellicular strips, ingestion apparatus barely visible by light microscopy and two flagella pointed in different directions when moving. Stephanopogon pattersoni (Percolozoa): size in vivo, $20{\sim}33{\mu}m\;long$, with 6 ventral and 1 ventro-lateral ciliary rows, and three barbs. Thaumatomastix sp. (Cercozoa): size in vivo, $14{\sim}17{\mu}m$ with body scales and spines, and two flagella with one naked and one scaled.

• Journal of Species Research
• /
• v.5 no.3
• /
• pp.381-384
• /
• 2016

Two marine amoebae Vannella bursella (Page, 1974) Smirnov et al., 2007 and Pseudoparamoeba sp. were encountered from marine coastal waters of Masan Bay and Garorim Bay (Korea), respectively. These species are described with uninterpreted records based on light-microscopy of living cells and reported taxonomically for the first time from Korea. Diagnostics of these species are as follows. Vannella bursella: size in vivo, $17-29{\mu}m$ long with flattened ovoid, semicircular locomotive forms. Pseudoparamoeba sp.: size in vivo, $10-15{\mu}m$ long with elongated locomotive forms, producing a few short conical pseudopodia from anterior hyaline zone.