Keppenodinium lobata
Diagnosis
Diagnosis_Genus: The trophont develops inside the endoplasm of its host (Radiolaria, Polycystinea, Spumellarida). Chromosomes have a normal appareance at this stage. Digitations of the cytoplasm are formed. A small structure, likely homologous to the lamina pharyngea in Euduboscquella, is formed at the external part of one of these digitations. Sporulation develops inside the ectoplasm, and starts when one or more digitations pass through the host shell. During sporulation, chromosomes have a V-shaped appearance.
Diagnosis-Species: This parasite is infecting Plegmosphaera coronata, a Sphaerellidae, that does not have internal spicules in their skeleton (only a spongy shell). The mature trophont is uninucleated (70 x 40 µm in size). The host nucleus is digested only at the end of the trophont maturation. Mature trophont has 200 µm of diameter. The sporont forms short digitations that elongated throughout all possible aperture of the host shell. Within digitations, eosinophylic elongated structure are observed in the cytoplasm. Sporulation not described. More than one sporont at different maturation stages may develop within the same host: they correspond the multiple infections from different individuals.
Type species
The type species of the genus is Keppenodinium mycetoides.
Type illustration / Type locality / Type specimen
Type host: Plegmosphaera coronata
Ecology
Sociability_sporont: solitary
Sociability_sporont: sometime gregarious
Substrate: endozoic
Salinity: marine
Life cycle
Generation: <1 month
Reproduction_mode: asexual
Symbiont: horizontal
Feeding behaviour
Reference(s)
Observation site(s)
HOSTS
Association with... | Region origin | Name of site | In reference... |
---|---|---|---|
Plegmophora coronata |
Contribution à l’étude des péridiniens parasites. Cytologie, cycles évolutifs. Ann. Sci. Nat. Zool. 6:1-158. (1964) |