Marine Biotechnology Laboratory, CSIR-National Institute of Oceanography, Dona Paula, Goa, 403004, India.
Microb Ecol. 2013 May;65(4):955-63. doi: 10.1007/s00248-012-0149-0. Epub 2013 Jan 13.
The relationship of the marine heterokont stramenopilan protists, the aplanochytrids, with the zooplankton was studied in coastal waters. The aplanochytrids were fed to the zooplankton specimens and observed for grazing by two different approaches: [1] using fluorescently-labeled prey approach and [2] using internal transcribed spacer-based molecular probe and in situ hybridization approach. The aplanochytrid cells were detected in the guts as well as fecal pellets of the zooplankton, thus serving as prey to them. Aplanochytrids were consistently isolated from zooplankton specimens. The isolates did not produce a wide array of enzymes, implicating that they may not play a major role in degradation of zooplankton exoskeleton. They were found to produce only protease considerably and sometimes lipase too. The amplified rDNA restriction analysis showed similar patterns, suggesting that most of the isolates might be same strains of Aplanochytrium spp. The existence of aplanochytrids with the zooplankton in marine waters points towards their probable association either as predator-prey or as commensalistic rather than saprophytic type of association.
研究了海洋不等鞭毛类原生动物、等指藻与浮游动物的关系。采用两种不同的方法研究了等指藻对浮游动物的摄食作用：[1] 使用荧光标记的猎物方法和[2] 使用基于内部转录间隔区的分子探针和原位杂交方法。在浮游动物的肠道和粪便颗粒中都检测到了等指藻细胞，因此它们是浮游动物的食物。等指藻能够从浮游动物标本中持续分离出来。这些分离株没有产生广泛的酶，这表明它们可能在浮游动物外骨骼的降解中不起主要作用。它们只被发现产生相当数量的蛋白酶，有时也产生脂肪酶。扩增 rDNA 限制性分析显示出相似的模式，表明大多数分离株可能是相同的 Aplanochytrium spp. 菌株。海洋水中存在浮游动物和等指藻表明它们之间可能存在捕食者-猎物或共生关系，而不是腐生关系。
