Opalozoa is a subphylum of heterotrophic protists of the phylum Bigyra, and is the sister group to Sagenista.[2][1] Opalozoans are non-photosynthetic heterokonts that are ancestrally phagotrophic but many times have evolved to be osmotrophic saprotrophs in the gut of vertebrate animals.[3]

Opalozoa
Opalina ranarum, an opalozoan
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Clade: Diaphoretickes
Clade: SAR
Clade: Stramenopiles
Phylum: Bigyra
Subphylum: Opalozoa
Cavalier-Smith, 1991 stat. nov. 2006[1]
Infraphyla and classes[1]

Taxonomy

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History: phylum Opalozoa

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In 1993 the name “Opalozoa” referred to a group of protists that was very different from what it is now. It was a phylum composed of many unrelated zooflagellates, grouped together because of the common presence of tubular mitochondrial cristae and the lack of cortical alveoli or rigid tubular ciliary hairs (retronemes). It also included the opalinids, proteomyxids and plasmodiophorids.[4]

Modern classification

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The modern taxonomy of Opalozoa, down to order level, is as follows:[1]

Phylogeny

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The cladogram below shows the internal relationships of Opalozoa.[1]

Opalozoa

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e Cavalier-Smith, Thomas; Scoble, Josephine Margaret (2012). "Phylogeny of Heterokonta: Incisomonas marina, a uniciliate gliding opalozoan related to Solenicola (Nanomonadea), and evidence that Actinophryida evolved from raphidophytes". European Journal of Protistology. 49 (3): 328–353. doi:10.1016/j.ejop.2012.09.002. PMID 23219323.
  2. ^ Cavalier-Smith, Thomas (2017). "Kingdom Chromista and its eight phyla: a new synthesis emphasising periplastid protein targeting, cytoskeletal and periplastid evolution, and ancient divergences". Protoplasma. 255: 297–357. doi:10.1007/s00709-017-1147-3. PMC 5756292. S2CID 254085270.
  3. ^ Cavalier-Smith, Thomas; Chao, Ema E-Y. (2006). "Phylogeny and Megasystematics of Phagotrophic Heterokonts (Kingdom Chromista)". J Mol Evol. 62 (4): 388–420. doi:10.1007/s00239-004-0353-8. PMID 16557340. S2CID 29567514.
  4. ^ a b Cavalier-Smith T (September 1993). "The Protozoan Phylum Opalozoa". Eukaryotic Microbiology. 40 (5): 609–615. doi:10.1111/j.1550-7408.1993.tb06117.x. S2CID 84129692.