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Citation for Study 11009

About Citation title: "Resolving the identity crisis of a model species: The marine diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana is the freshwater diatom Cyclotella nana".
About Study name: "Resolving the identity crisis of a model species: The marine diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana is the freshwater diatom Cyclotella nana".
About This study is part of submission 10999 (Status: Published).

Citation

Alverson A., Beszteri B., Julius M.L., & Theriot E.C. 2010. Resolving the identity crisis of a model species: The marine diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana is the freshwater diatom Cyclotella nana. BMC Evolutionary Biology, .

Authors

  • Alverson A.
  • Beszteri B.
  • Julius M.L. (submitter) Phone 320-308-6684
  • Theriot E.C. Phone 512-983-4205

Abstract

Publication of the first diatom genome, that of Thalassiosira pseudonana, established it as a model species for experimental and genomic studies of diatoms. Virtually every ensuing study has treated T. pseudonana as a marine diatom, with genomic and experimental data thought to provide insights into the diatom ecology and evolution of diatoms in the world's oceans. The natural distribution of T. pseudonana actually spans both marine and fresh waters, and phylogenetic analyses show that the ancestral habitat type this model marine diatom is most likely freshwater, with marine strains representing recent recolonizations of higher salinity habitats. The multitude of physical barriers that must be overcome for diatoms to successfully colonize freshwaters suggests that T. pseudonana's physiological traits, and the genes underlying those traits, might differ substantially from those of a strictly marine diatom, undermining its established role as a model marine diatom. Phylogenetic analyses also ally T. pseudonana with the genus Cyclotella, compelling resurrection of T. pseudonana's original name, Cyclotella nana. Cyclotella contains a mix of marine and freshwater species and so more accurately conveys the complexities of the phylogenetic and natural histories of T. pseudonana, which merit consideration in the interpretation of experimental data collected for this important model species.

Keywords

diatom, freshwater, marine, model species, Thalassiosira pseudonana

External links

About this resource

  • Canonical resource URI: http://purl.org/phylo/treebase/phylows/study/TB2:S11009
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