11.4.2 Protists: Alveolata and Stramenopila Flashcards
1
Q
Protists: Alveolata and Stramenopila
A
- It is likely that the common ancestor of the Eukaryotes was a protist.
- The Alveolata contain membrane-bound cavities called alveoli under their cell surfaces.
- Members of the candidate kingdom Stramenopila have plant-like characteristics and include diatoms, golden algae, brown algae and water molds.
- The candidate kingdom Rhodophyta is also known as the red algae.
- The green algae are very similar to plants but are currently classified in a separate candidate kingdom.
2
Q
note
A
- The transition from unicellularity to colonialism to
multicellularity must have occurred at some point after the evolution of protists. The common ancestor of the domain Eukarya was most likely a protist. - Remember, the word protist does not imply phylogenetic relationships. There are at least six candidate kingdoms that include protists. This tutorial covers four of these kingdoms: Alveolata, Stamenopila, Rhodophyta and the green algae.
- The candidate kingdom Alveolata includes the dinoflagellates, apicomplexans and ciliates.
- Dinoflagellates are autotrophic and contain a high
concentration of the brownish-red pigment, xanthophyll. A harmful dinoflagellate, Pfisteria piscicida may have caused large fish kills in the mid-Atlantic states. - The apicomplexans are characterized by an apicomplex, which is a specialized structure for burrowing into host cells. They are parasitic and a common example is Plasmodium sp., which is responsible for malaria.
- Ciliates are covered in cilia for motilitiy. A common example of a ciliate is Paramecium sp.
- The candidate kingdom Stramenopila include the diatoms, the golden algae, the brown algae and the water molds.
- Diatoms are the most common aquatic unicellular organism.
- They have beautiful glass-like shells that are made from silica.
- The golden algae contain yellow and brown pigments called carotene and xanthophyll. There are both heterotrophic and photosynthetic species of golden algae.
- The brown algae are commonly called seaweed. They are often multicellular as seen in the photograph of the brown algae, Macrocystis sp. shown on the left.
- Water molds are commonly called mildew. They have cell walls that are made of cellulose. An example is
Saprolegnia sp. - The candidate kingdom Rhodophyta is commonly called the red algae. They contain the red pigment phycoerythrin. They can be multicellular and their cells lack flagella.
- The green algae are quite similar to plants. There are both marine and freshwater species and they can be either unicellular or multicellular. A common example of green algae is the sea lettuce of the genus Ulva.
3
Q
Which of the following is not a member of the candidate kingdom Stramenopila?
A
- euglena
4
Q
____________________ have beautiful glass-like shells.
A
- Diatoms
5
Q
Macrocystis sp. are
A
- none of the choices is correct
6
Q
The ____________________ contain membrane-bound cavities under their cell surfaces.
A
- Alveolata
7
Q
Dinoflagellates contain high concentrations of the brownish-red pigment, ____________________.
A
- xanthophyll
8
Q
Saprolegnia sp. are
A
- water molds