Chytridium olla A. Braun, the first described chytrid and an obligate algal parasite, is the type for the genus and thus the foundation of family Chytridiaceae, order Chytridiales, class Chytridiomycetes and phylum Chytridiomycota. Chytridium olla was isolated in coculture with its host, Oedogonium capilliforme. DNA was extracted from the coculture, and 18S, 28S and ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 rDNA were amplified with universal fungal primers. Free swimming zoospores and zoospores in mature sporangia were examined with electron microscopy. Molecular analyses placed C. olla in a clade in Chytridiales with isolates of Chytridium lagenaria and Phlyctochytrium planicorne. Ultrastructural analysis revealed C. olla to have a Group II-type zoospore, previously described for Chytridium lagenaria and Phlyctochytrium planicorne. On the basis of zoospore ultrastructure, family Chytridiaceae is emended to include the type of Chytridium and other species with a Group II-type zoospore, and the new family Chytriomycetaceae is delineated to include members of Chytridiales with a Group I-type zoospore.
Sampling for chytrids in a variety of habitats has resulted in pure cultures that when analyzed have yielded hypotheses of relationships based on molecular and zoospore ultrastructural markers. To extend our understanding of diversity of Chytridiales in eastern Argentina and USA, we isolated and examined the morphology, ultrastructure and 28S and ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 rDNA sequences of numerous chytrids from aquatic habitats from these two regions. Three family-level lineages (Chytridiaceae, Chytriomycetaceae, family incertae sedis) are represented in our molecular phylogeny, and three new genera (Avachytrium, Odontochytrium in Chytriomycetaceae, Delfinachytrium in family incertae sedis) are described. These findings of new genera and species emphasize the potential for discovery of additional diversity.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations –citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.