Cryptophyte algae are robbed of their organelles by the marine ciliate Mesodinium rubrum

Daniel E. Gustafson (), Diane K. Stoecker, Matthew D. Johnson, William F. Van Heukelem and Kerri Sneider
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Daniel E. Gustafson: University of Maryland, Center for Environmental Science, Horn Point Laboratory, PO Box 775
Diane K. Stoecker: University of Maryland, Center for Environmental Science, Horn Point Laboratory, PO Box 775
Matthew D. Johnson: University of Maryland, Center for Environmental Science, Horn Point Laboratory, PO Box 775
William F. Van Heukelem: University of Maryland, Center for Environmental Science, Horn Point Laboratory, PO Box 775
Kerri Sneider: University of Maryland, Center for Environmental Science, Horn Point Laboratory, PO Box 775

Nature, 2000, vol. 405, issue 6790, 1049-1052

Abstract: Abstract Mesodinium rubrum (Lohmann 1908) Jankowski 1976 (= Myrionecta rubra)1,2 is a common photosynthetic marine planktonic ciliate which can form coastal red-tides3. It may represent a ‘species complex’4,5 and since Darwin's voyage on the Beagle, it has been of great cytological, physiological and evolutionary interest4. It is considered to be functionally a phytoplankter because it was thought to have lost the capacity to feed and possesses a highly modified algal endosymbiont5,6. Whether M. rubrum is the result of a permanent endosymbiosis or a transient association between a ciliate and an alga is controversial7. We conducted ‘feeding’ experiments to determine how exposure to a cryptophyte alga affects M. rubrum. Here we show that although M. rubrum lacks a cytostome (oral cavity)8, it ingests cryptophytes and steals their organelles, and may not maintain a permanent endosymbiont. M. rubrum does not fall into recognized cellular or functional categories, but may be a chimaera partially supported by organelle robbery.

Date: 2000
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DOI: 10.1038/35016570

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