Stygiellidae is a family of free-living marine flagellates belonging to the order Jakobida, a deep-branching lineage within the eukaryotic supergroup Discoba. They are unicellular organisms that commonly inhabit anoxic, sulfide-rich and ammonium-rich marine habitats worldwide.[1]

Stygiellidae
Stygiella incarcerata under light microscopy stained with protargol
Velundella nauta under DIC microscopy
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Class: Jakobea
Order: Jakobida
Suborder: Andalucina
Family: Stygiellidae
Pánek, Táborský & Čepička 2015[1]
Type genus
Stygiella
Pánek, Táborský & Čepička 2015
Genera[1]
Diversity
6 species
Stygiellidae distribution map.[1]

Cell morphology and behavior

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Members of Stygiellidae are genetically diverse but morphologically similar anaerobic jakobids. The unifying aspect of their appearance is their cristae-lacking mitochondria due to the secondary loss of aerobic metabolism. They resemble jakobid cells, and form two morphotypes: grooved cells, attached to the substrate, with a conspicuous groove; and swimming cells, with a less distinct, narrower groove. Both morphotypes move in a spiral motion, although the swimming cells are faster. It is difficult to distinguish morphological aspects between species due to the variability among cells within the same strain and the similarity between grooved and swimming cells.[1]

Ecology and distribution

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Stygiellidae are bacterivorous nanoflagellates almost exclusively found in marine, oxygen-poor (anoxic or microoxic) environments, often in presence of sulfides, methane or ammonium. However, some environmental sequences of Stygiellidae have been reported in oxic waters in Saanich Inlet, without sulfide or ammonium. They are also detected in other non-marine saline environments such as brackish waters and inland salt springs, but never in freshwater habitats.[1]

Evolution and classification

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Evolution of the anaerobic metabolism

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The anaerobic Stygiellidae is one of two clades of the suborder Andalucina, the other clade being the aerobic Andaluciidae. Andalucina, along with Histionina and Ophirinina, are the two lineages of Jakobida, an important group in the supergroup Discoba.[1][2]

Jakobida

Stygiellidae, unlike the rest of jakobids, have evolved to adopt an obligatory anaerobic lifestyle, and possess mitochondrion-related organelles (MROs) that lack cristae. They appear to lack all components of the electron transport chain and the TCA cycle, except for two complex I subunits, and no mitochondrial genome has been found. Instead, the MROs possess components of the pyruvate metabolism similar to the hydrogenosomes seen in Metamonada, another basal anaerobic group of eukaryotes. Overall, Stygiellidae appear to have retained a wider group of genes for the mitochondrial aminoacid metabolism than metamonads.[3]

Internal phylogeny

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Stygiellidae is a monophyletic group containing all jakobids detected in anoxic habitats. It splits into six well-supported clades: Stygiella, Velundella and four environmental clades (named EC I–IV), all of which appear strongly monophyletic.[1]

Classification

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The family contains 6 species distributed in 2 genera.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Pánek T, Táborský P, Pachiadaki MG, Hroudová M, Vlček Č, Edgcomb VP, Čepička I (2015). "Combined Culture-Based and Culture-Independent Approaches Provide Insights into Diversity of Jakobids, an Extremely Plesiomorphic Eukaryotic Lineage". Frontiers in Microbiology. 6: 1288. doi:10.3389/fmicb.2015.01288. PMC 4649034. PMID 26635756.
  2. ^ Yabuki A, Gyaltshen Y, Heiss AA, Fujikura K, Kim E (2018). "Ophirina amphinema n. gen., n. sp., a New Deeply Branching Discobid with Phylogenetic Affinity to Jakobids". Sci Rep. 8 (1): 16219. Bibcode:2018NatSR...816219Y. doi:10.1038/s41598-018-34504-6. PMC 6212452. PMID 30385814.
  3. ^ Leger MM, Kolísko M, Stairs CW, Simpson AGB (2019). "Mitochondrion-Related Organelles in Free-Living Protists". In Tachezy J (ed.). Hydrogenosomes and Mitosomes: Mitochondria of Anaerobic Eukaryotes. Microbiology Monographs. Vol. 9. Springer, Cham. pp. 287–308. doi:10.1007/978-3-030-17941-0_12. hdl:10261/208216. ISBN 978-3-030-17941-0. S2CID 202018954.
  4. ^ Lara E, Chatzinotas A, Simpson AGB (2006). "Andalucia (n. gen.)—the Deepest Branch Within Jakobids (Jakobida; Excavata), Based on Morphological and Molecular Study of a New Flagellate from Soil". Journal of Eukaryotic Microbiology. 53 (2): 112–120. doi:10.1111/j.1550-7408.2005.00081.x. PMID 16579813. S2CID 19092265.
  5. ^ Bernard C, Simpson AGB, Patterson DJ (2000). "Some free-living flagellates (protista) from anoxic habitats". Ophelia. 52 (2): 113–142. doi:10.1080/00785236.1999.10409422. S2CID 84902557.
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