| Oscillatoria princeps | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Oscillatoria princeps trichomes showing the "stack of poker chips" appearance of stacked cells. | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Bacteria |
| Phylum: | Cyanobacteria |
| Class: | Cyanophyceae |
| Order: | Oscillatoriales |
| Family: | Oscillatoriaceae |
| Genus: | Oscillatoria |
| Species: | O. princeps |
| Binomial name | |
| Oscillatoria princeps | |
Oscillatoria princeps is the type species (lectotype) of the cyanobacterial (blue green algal) genus Oscillatoria .
O. princeps is dark blue green in colour due to the presence of two phycobilin pigments: phycocyanin and phycoerythrin. Individual filaments, called trichomes, are blue green to olive green in colour. Mature trichomes are straight and unconstricted in growth phase. Though constrictions were observed during reproduction. Distinct cross walls are present.
Each trichome comprises a single row of cells stacked one above the other. A cytoplasmic sheath is present around the cells which is very thin, hyaline and indistinct. The individual cells within a trichome are round in shape and much wider than they are long. When such cells are stacked one above the other in a trichome, it gives a "stack of poker chips" appearance, which is a characteristic feature of this species. [2] The first cell in a trichome (the apical cell) is hemispherical with keritomized (irregular to radial thylakoid arrangement) content. The size of cells vary from 57.6 μm to 69.1 μm wide and 5.2 μm to 9.6 μm long. The ratio of cell length to width is 1:8.
A microscopic crack-like nick is found on the trichomes. [2] Notches on individual cells were found at the inner side of the cell corresponding the slit on the trichome. When the cells are stacked one above the other, it results in the crack like structure. Tthe number of notches in a single cell equals the number of slits on the trichome. One to three notches per slit were observed by Uma Rani et al. 2015. [2]
 | This section may be too technical for most readers to understand.(October 2024) |
Cell division takes place only in the transverse direction. Reproduction takes place only by vegetative methods namely fragmentation and hormogonia. Both the methods were observed in most of the study. Fragmentation takes place by the degradation of weakened cells or mechanically damaged cells. The trichome divides into smaller fragments. The cells of the fragment by repeated division develop into a new filament.
This species is ubiquitous in distribution. It is reported in both marine and fresh waters. [3] [2]
Spirogyra is a genus of filamentous charophyte green algae of the order Zygnematales, named for the helical or spiral arrangement of the chloroplasts that is characteristic of the genus. Spirogyra species, of which there are more than 400, are commonly found in freshwater habitats. Spirogyra measures approximately 10 to 100 micrometres in width and may grow to several centimetres in length. It is often observed as green slimy patches on the ground near ponds and other water bodies having stagnant water.
Fragmentation in multicellular or colonial organisms is a form of asexual reproduction or cloning, where an organism is split into fragments upon maturation and the spilted part becomes the new individual.
Ulothrix is a genus of green algae in the family Ulotrichaceae.
Oscillatoria is a genus of filamentous cyanobacteria. It is often found in freshwater environments. Its name refers to the oscillating motion of its filaments as they slide against each other to position the colony to face a light source. Oscillatoria uses photosynthesis to survive and reproduce. Each filament of Oscillatoria consists of a row of cells called a trichome. The tip of the trichome oscillates like a pendulum.
Dictyosphaeria is a genus of green algae in the family Siphonocladaceae.
Sphaeroplea is a genus of green algae in the family Sphaeropleaceae. It was first circumscribed by the Swedish botanist Carl Adolph Agardh in 1824.
Sea anemones are a group of predatory marine invertebrates constituting the order Actiniaria. Because of their colourful appearance, they are named after the Anemone, a terrestrial flowering plant. Sea anemones are classified in the phylum Cnidaria, class Anthozoa, subclass Hexacorallia. As cnidarians, sea anemones are related to corals, jellyfish, tube-dwelling anemones, and Hydra. Unlike jellyfish, sea anemones do not have a medusa stage in their life cycle.
Planktothrix is a diverse genus of filamentous cyanobacteria observed to amass in algal blooms in water ecosystems across the globe. Like all Oscillatoriales, Planktothrix species have no heterocysts and no akinetes. Planktothrix are unique because they have trichomes and contain gas vacuoles unlike typical planktonic organisms. Previously, some species of the taxon were grouped within the genus Oscillatoria, but recent work has defined Planktothrix as its own genus. A tremendous body of work on Planktothrix ecology and physiology has been done by Anthony E. Walsby, and the 55.6 kb microcystin synthetase gene which gives these organisms the ability to synthesize toxins has been sequenced. P. agardhii is an example of a type species of the genus. P. agardhii and P. rubescens are commonly observed in lakes of the Northern Hemisphere where they are known producers of potent hepatotoxins called microcystins.
Hildenbrandia is a genus of thalloid red alga comprising about 26 species. The slow-growing, non-mineralized thalli take a crustose form. Hildenbrandia reproduces by means of conceptacles and produces tetraspores.
Convolutriloba is a genus of marine acoelomorph worms.
Petalonema alatum is a cyanobacterium. It was first described and drawn by the Scottish author Dugald Carmichael under the taxonomic name Oscillatoria allata in 1826. In 1833, Miles Joseph Berkeley re-published it under its current name Petalonema alatum. P. alatum produces a slime-like mucopolysaccharide in the form of interlocking slime funnels. The structure looks like a quill under the light microscope, which is where the species gets its name "alatum", meaning quill. These slime envelopes are up to 270 μm wide in diameter and are therefore visible by the naked eye as filiform formations. The habitats for this filamentous cyanobacterium are mainly wet limestone walls and creates together with other bacteria, microalgae, bryophytes and micromycets gray or gray-brown biofilms. Populations of P. alatum have specialized cells - yellow heterocytes to bind atmospheric nitrogen which are in colour contrast to vegetative blue-green/turquoise cells in filamentous thallus.
Sirodotia Kylin (1912) is a genus of freshwater red alga in the Batrachospermaceae family, found in temperate and tropical waters. It was first described by Kylin in 1912.
Sirodotia huillensis Skuja is a freshwater red algal species belonging to the family Batrachospermaceae. This species mostly reported from high altitude forest streams.
Trichodesmium thiebautii is a cyanobacteria that is often found in open oceans of tropical and subtropical regions and is known to be a contributor to large oceanic surface blooms. This microbial species is a diazotroph, meaning it fixes nitrogen gas (N2), but it does so without the use of heterocysts. T. thiebautii is able to simultaneously perform oxygenic photosynthesis. T. thiebautii was discovered in 1892 by M.A. Gomont. T. thiebautii are important for nutrient cycling in marine habitats because of their ability to fix N2, a limiting nutrient in ocean ecosystems.
Oscillatoria brevis is a species of the genus Oscillatoria first identified in 1892. It is a blue-green filamentous cyanobacterium, which can be found in brackish and fresh waterways. O. brevis can also be isolated from soil.
Nostoc thermotolerans was a newly isolated strain of cyanobacteria cultured in Mandsaur, Madhya Pradesh, India as of 2017. In habitat, these cyanobacteria live in macroscopic light blue-green mats found in the crevices of small hillocks. This Nostoc species lives in an extremely hot and dry environment, which the name implies. Thermotolerans. The environmental temperature ranges from 43 °C (day) to 29 °C (night) and the average soil pH is 7.3 [1].
Acinetospora crinita is a species of brown alga in the family Acinetosporaceae. It is found in the temperate northeastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.
Cyanobacterial morphology refers to the form or shape of cyanobacteria. Cyanobacteria are a large and diverse phylum of bacteria defined by their unique combination of pigments and their ability to perform oxygenic photosynthesis.
Crustaphytum is a genus of red alga first discovered in Taoyuan algal reefs by Taiwanese scientists. The epithet “crusta” refers to crustose thallus and “phytum” refers to plant. Belonging to the family Hapalidiaceae in the order Hapalidiales, Crustaphytum is one kind of crustose coralline algae.
Pyrenothrix is a small genus of lichen-forming fungi in the family Pyrenotrichaceae. It comprises two species of filamentous lichens, which are organisms formed by a symbiotic relationship between fungi and photosynthetic partners. The genus is characterized by its unique structure, featuring densely arranged filaments composed of cyanobacteria wrapped in fungal threads. Pyrenothrix species form dark greyish-brown growths on various surfaces, with one species found on tree bark and the other on leaves in tropical forests. The genus was circumscribed in 1917 by American scientist Lincoln Ware Riddle, based on specimens collected in Florida. Pyrenothrix is distinguished from other lichens by its intricate cellular structure and reproductive features, including specialized spore-producing structures.