Ultrastructural Description of the Family Metacystidae (Prostomatida, Ciliophora, Protista) and a Phylogenetic Analysis of the Prostomate Ciliates

WPC 2 B V P Z快递10cpi？X，k x 6 X@8；X@HP LaserJet(25合一，网络)HPLase II PRS x@，t 0 OPX@2 2@Z CPI 3|x Sj x 6 X@8；X@HP DeskJet500HPDES500.prs x@x X，，0 fx@2，F P#|x 9305925 Lipscomb在过去的二十年里，许多超微结构；纤毛虫属的描述提供了新的信息，启发了纤毛虫系统学的审查和修订。然而，关于原口目纤毛虫超微结构形态的研究文献很少，而原口目亚目的研究工作还很少。由于这些纤毛虫被认为是最原始的纤毛虫之一，在对纤毛纲进行稳定的分类之前，有必要对它们进行彻底的形态和分类分析。这一建议的主要目的是扩大PI以前对纤毛虫的分类研究的范围，通过对该科所有属的超微结构描述、对Metacystis属一种的形态发生的描述以及该科与其他原口纤毛虫的关系的分支系统发育分析，将该科包括在内。分支分析将允许检验关于原口纤毛虫的原始进化地位的假说。拟议的调查的更广泛的意义在于，了解纤毛虫种群的多样性和系统发育将提供对作用于单个真核细胞和微生物的基本进化原理的洞察。在分析这些纤毛虫复杂的超微结构特征时，将探索各种排序多态特征的方法的问题和局限性。这种方法论探索的细节应该对从事不同生物体群体工作的系统学家和面对多态特征排序问题的系统学家具有广泛的价值。纤毛虫作为分解者食物链中细菌、藻类、其他原生动物和小型隐翅虫的捕食者，在临时性滨海湿地中扮演着重要的角色。但这些纤毛虫中的大多数之间的关系却鲜为人知。这个项目将利用详细的超微结构分析来解决后囊虫科的关系问题，这一组被认为是非常基础的，因此对于理解这些重要原生动物的关系至关重要。

WPC 2 B V P Z Courier 10cpi ? x x x , k x 6 X @ 8 ; X @ HP Laserjet (25-in-one, Network) HPLASEII.PRS x @ , t 0 OpX @ 2 2 @ Z cpi 3| x Sj x 6 X @ 8 ; X @ HP DeskJet 500 HPDES500.PRS x @ x X , , 0 FX @ 2 , F P #| x 9305925 Lipscomb During the past two decades many ultrastructural; descriptions of ciliate genera provided new information that inspired reviews and revisions of ciliate systematics. However, there have been only a few publications on the ultrastructural morphology of ciliates in the order Prostomatida, and no work at all on the suborder Prostomatina. Because these ciliates have been proposed to be among the most primitive ciliates, a thorough morphological and taxonomic analysis of them is necessary before a stable classification of the phylum Ciliophora can be achieved. The primary objective of this proposal is to extend the taxonomic scope of the PI's previous studies on the ciliates to include the prostomate family Metacystidae Kahl 1926 by focussing on an ultrastructural description of all the genera in the family, a description of the morphogenesis of a species of the genus Metacystis , and a cladistic phylogenetic analysis of the family's relationship to other prostomial ciliates. The cladistic analysis will allow testing of hypotheses about the supposedly primitive evolutionary position of prostomate ciliates. The broader significance of the proposed investigation is that understanding the diversity and phylogeny of ciliate groups will provide insight into basic evolutionary principles acting on both the single eukaryotic cell and on microbial organisms. In analyzing the complex ultrastructural features o f these ciliates, problems and limitations of various methods for ordering multistate characters will be explored. Details of this methodological exploration should be of broad value to systematists working with different groups of organisms and confronting problems with multistate character ordering. %%% Ciliate protozoa play an important role in temporate costal wetlands as predators on bacteria, algae, other protozoa and small invertabrates in the decomposer food chain. But the relationships of most of these ciliates are poorly understood. This project will utilize detailed ultrastructural analysis to address questions of relationships of the family Metacystidae, a group considered to be very basal and therefore critical in understanding relationships of these important protozoa.