Vannella epipetala n. sp. Isolated from the Leaf Surface of Spondias mombin (Anacardiaceae) Growing in the Dry Forest of Costa Rica

As part of a Microbial Observatory of Caterpillars located in the Area de Conservacíon Guanacaste (ACG) in northwestern Costa Rica, we isolated a novel species of the genus Vannella associated with the food of the caterpillars of the saturniid moth Rothschildia lebeau, namely the leaves of the dry f...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Journal of eukaryotic microbiology 2006-11, Vol.53 (6), p.522-530
Main Authors: AMARAL-ZETTLER, LINDA A., COLE, JEFFREY, LAATSCH, ABBY D., NERAD, THOMAS A., ANDERSON, O. ROGER, REYSENBACH, ANNA-LOUISE
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Anacardiaceae
Anacardiaceae - parasitology
Animals
Biological and medical sciences
Costa Rica
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Genes, rRNA
Gymnamoebae
Lobosea - classification
Lobosea - genetics
Lobosea - isolation & purification
micro-heterogeneity
molecular systematics
phylosphere
Placida
Plant Leaves - parasitology
Platyamoeba
Protozoa
RNA, Protozoan - analysis
RNA, Protozoan - genetics
secondary structure model
Spondias mombin
SSU rRNA
Systematics. Geographical distribution. Morphology. Cytology
Vannella
vannella epipetala
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Summary:As part of a Microbial Observatory of Caterpillars located in the Area de Conservacíon Guanacaste (ACG) in northwestern Costa Rica, we isolated a novel species of the genus Vannella associated with the food of the caterpillars of the saturniid moth Rothschildia lebeau, namely the leaves of the dry forest deciduous tree Spondias mombin (Anacardiaceae). The new species can be distinguished from other described species of the genus by the presence of a plasmalemma coated with a thickened, osmiophilic lamina containing glycostyles, and by its unusual habitat, the leaf surfaces or phylosphere of S. mombin. We further established the novelty of our isolate by sequencing its nuclear small‐subunit (SSU) rRNA gene and inferring its phylogenetic position among all other currently sequenced members of the genera Vannella and Platyamoeba. Our results reveal that our isolate shares most recent common ancestry with three strains of Platyamoeba placida, the type species of the genus Platyamoeba. Despite this placement, the isolate clearly possesses glycostyles that are the hallmark of the genus Vannella. In addition to the cultured isolate, we also present a closely related sequence from a SSU rRNA gene clone library constructed from a DNA extract of leaf‐wash of S. mombin with sterile water.
ISSN:1066-5234
1550-7408
DOI:10.1111/j.1550-7408.2006.00143.x