Asymmetric cell division and its role in cell fate determination in the green alga Tetraselmis indica.
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Date
2015-12
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Abstract
The prasinophytes (early diverging Chlorophyta), consisting of simple unicellular green algae, occupy a critical
position at the base of the green algal tree of life, with some of its representatives viewed as the cell form most similar
to the first green alga, the ‘ancestral green flagellate’. Relatively large-celled unicellular eukaryotic phytoflagellates
(such as Tetraselmis and Scherffelia), traditionally placed in Prasinophyceae but now considered as members of
Chlorodendrophyceae (core Chlorophyta), have retained some primitive characteristics of prasinophytes. These
organisms share several ultrastructural features with the other core chlorophytes (Trebouxiophyceae, Ulvophyceae
and Chlorophyceae). However, the role of Chlorodendrophycean algae as the evolutionary link between cellular
individuality and cellular cooperation has been largely unstudied. Here, we show that clonal populations of a
unicellular chlorophyte, Tetraselmis indica, consist of morphologically and ultrastructurally variant cells which arise
through asymmetric cell division. These cells also differ in their physiological properties. The structural and
physiological differences in the clonal cell population correlate to a certain extent with the longevity and function
of cells.
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Keywords
Asymmetric cell division, Chlorophyte, morphological distinction, physiological differences, Tetraselmis, ultrastructural variations
Citation
Arora Mani, Anil Arga Chandrashekar, Burgess Karl, Delany Jane, Mesbahi Ehsan. Asymmetric cell division and its role in cell fate determination in the green alga Tetraselmis indica. Journal of Biosciences. 2015 Dec; 40(5):921-927.