Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Protistology, Zoological Institute RAS, St Petersburg, Russia.
Research Department for Limnology, University of Innsbruck, Mondsee, Austria.
J Eukaryot Microbiol. 2024 Jan-Feb;71(1):e13004. doi: 10.1111/jeu.13004. Epub 2023 Oct 17.
Paramecium (Ciliophora, Oligohymenophorea) is a good model to study ciliate biogeography. Extensive sampling mainly in northern hemisphere has led to 16 valid morphological species description thus far. However, a majority of hard-to-reach regions, including South East Asia, are underinvestigated. Our study combined traditional morphological and molecular approaches to reveal the biodiversity of Paramecium in Thailand from more than 110 samples collected in 10 provinces. Representatives of seven morphological species were identified from our collection, including the rare species, such as P. gigas and P. jenningsi. Additionally, we detected five different sibling species of the P. aurelia complex, described a new cryptic species P. hiwatashii n. sp. phylogenetically related to P. caudatum, and discovered a potentially new genetic species of the P. bursaria species complex. We also documented a variety of bacterial cytoplasmic symbionts from at least nine monoclonal cultures of Paramecium.
草履虫（纤毛门，寡膜纲）是研究纤毛动物生物地理学的良好模型。迄今为止，主要在北半球进行的广泛采样导致了 16 种有效形态物种描述。然而，包括东南亚在内的大多数难以到达的地区仍未得到充分调查。我们的研究结合了传统的形态学和分子方法，从泰国 10 个省采集的 110 多个样本中揭示了泰国草履虫的生物多样性。从我们的采集样本中鉴定出了 7 种形态物种的代表，包括稀有物种，如 P. gigas 和 P. jenningsi。此外，我们还检测到了 P. aurelia 复合体的五个不同的姊妹种，描述了一个与 P. caudatum 亲缘关系密切的新隐种 P. hiwatashii n. sp.，并发现了 P. bursaria 种复合体的一个潜在新遗传种。我们还从至少 9 株草履虫的单克隆培养物中记录了多种细菌细胞质共生体。
