Pteromonas

Pteromonas
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Division:	Chlorophyta
Class:	Chlorophyceae
Order:	Chlamydomonadales
Family:	Phacotaceae
Genus:	Pteromonas ; Seligo
Type species
	Pteromonas aculeata; Seligo
Species
	Pteromonas aculeata ; Pteromonas angulosa ; Pteromonas golenkiniana ; Pteromonas protracta ;

Last updated July 17, 2025

Pteromonas is a genus of green algae in the family Phacotaceae.^[2] It has a cosmopolitan distribution,^[1] and mainly occurs in nutrient-rich freshwaters.^[3]

Pteromonas is a unicellular, motile organism with two flagella; the protoplast of the cell is contained in a transparent,^[4] flattened shell called a lorica. The two flagella emerge from separate openings in the anterior of the lorica. The lorica consists of two equal parts pressed together at their margins, forming a keel. The lorica is variously shaped, and may be undulate or spiny. The protoplast is pyriform, ovoid or globose and compressed. Cells contain a cup-shaped chloroplast with one or more pyrenoids and usually an stigma. Two contractile vacuoles are present at the base of the flagella. ^[1]

Asexual reproduction involves the division of the protoplast into two or four daughter cells, which are released when the two halves of the lorica separate. Sexual reproduction is isogamous; the two gametes fuse and develop into a globose zygote with a smooth cell wall.^[1]

Species are distinguished based on the general morphology (size, shape and placement of "wings") of the lorica, and number and position of pyrenoids.^[1]

References

1 2 3 4 5 Guiry, M.D.; Guiry, G.M. "Pteromonas Seligo, 1887". AlgaeBase . University of Galway . Retrieved 2025-04-01.
↑ See the NCBI webpage on Pteromonas. Data extracted from the "NCBI taxonomy resources". National Center for Biotechnology Information . Retrieved 2007-03-19.
↑ John, David M.; Whitton, Brian A.; Brook, Alan J. (2021). The Freshwater Algal Flora of the British Isles (2 ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 896. doi:10.1017/CHOL9781108784122. ISBN 978-1-108-78412-2.
↑ Nakada, Takashi; Nozaki, Hisayoshi (2014). "Chapter 6. Flagellate Green Algae". In Wehr, John D.; Sheath, Robert G.; Kociolek, J. Patrick (eds.). Freshwater Algae of North America: Ecology and Classification (2 ed.). Elsevier Inc. pp. 265–313. ISBN 978-0-12-385876-4.

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[AlgaeBase-1] 1 2 3 4 5 Guiry, M.D.; Guiry, G.M. "Pteromonas Seligo, 1887". AlgaeBase . University of Galway . Retrieved 2025-04-01.

[2] See the NCBI webpage on Pteromonas. Data extracted from the "NCBI taxonomy resources". National Center for Biotechnology Information . Retrieved 2007-03-19.

[3] John, David M.; Whitton, Brian A.; Brook, Alan J. (2021). The Freshwater Algal Flora of the British Isles (2 ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 896. doi:10.1017/CHOL9781108784122. ISBN 978-1-108-78412-2.

[Nakada2014-4] Nakada, Takashi; Nozaki, Hisayoshi (2014). "Chapter 6. Flagellate Green Algae". In Wehr, John D.; Sheath, Robert G.; Kociolek, J. Patrick (eds.). Freshwater Algae of North America: Ecology and Classification (2 ed.). Elsevier Inc. pp. 265–313. ISBN 978-0-12-385876-4.

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