Open Access

ARTICLE

Secondary zoospores in the algal endoparasite Maullinia ectocarpii (Plasmodiophoromycota)

ELISA R. PARODI^1,2*, EDUARDO J. CÁCERES³, RENATO WESTERMEIER⁴, DIETER G. MÜLLER⁵

1. Laboratorio de Ecología Acuática, Departamento Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia, Universidad Nacional del Sur. 8000 Bahía Blanca, Argentina.
2. CONICET-CCTBB -Instituto Argentino de Oceanografía (I.A.D.O.). CC 804. 8000 Bahía Blanca, Argentina.
3. Laboratorio de Ficología y Micología, Departamento Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia, Universidad Nacional del Sur. 8000 Bahía Blanca, Argentina.
4. Facultad de Pesquerías y Oceanografía, Universidad Austral de Chile, Casilla 1327, Puerto Montt, Chile.
5. Fachbereich Biologie, Universität Konstanz, D-78457, Konstanz, Germany.

*Address correspondence to: Elisa R. Parodi. E-mail:

BIOCELL 2010, 34(1), 45-52. https://doi.org/10.32604/biocell.2010.34.045

Abstract

The present paper deals with the ultrastructure of zoospores produced by the plasmodiophorid Maullinia ectocarpii, living in the marine algal host Ectocarpus siliculosus. The zoospores described here are very similar to secondary zoospores of Polymyxa graminis and Phagomyxa sp. (the latter an algal endoparasite, also). Our results indicate that M. ectocarpii produces two types of plasmodia, and suggest that is a species with a complete life cycle, as it is known for all the Plasmodiophormycota that have been studied. Sporogenic and sporangial plasmodia produce, respectively, primary zoospores with parallel flagella within thick walled resting sporangia, and secondary zoospores with opposite flagella within thin walled sporangia.

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