Ultrastructure and large subunit rDNA sequences of Lepidodinium viride reveal a close relationship to Lepidodinium chlorophorum comb. nov (= Gymnodinium chlorophorum)

The ultrastructure of the green dinoflagellate Lepididodinium viride M. M. Watanabe, S. Suda, I. Inouye Sawaguchi et Chihara was studied in detail. The nuclear envelope possessed numerous chambers each furnished with a nuclear pore, a similar arrangement to that found in other gymnodinioids. The flagellar apparatus was essentially identical to Gymnodinium chlorophorum Elbrachter et Schnepf, a species also containing chloroplasts of chlorophyte origin. Of particular interest was the connection of the flagellar apparatus to the nuclear envelope by means of both a fiber and a microtubular extension of the R3 flagellar root. This feature has not been found in other dinoflagellates and suggests a close relationship between these two species. This was confirmed by phylogenetic analysis based on partial sequences of the large subunit (LSU) rDNA gene of L. viride, G. chlorophorum and 16 other unarmoured dinoflagellates, including both the 'type' culture and a new Tasmanian isolate of G. chlorophorum. These two isolates had identical sequences and differed from L. viride by only 3.75% of their partial LSU sequences, considerably less than the difference between other Gymnodinium species. Therefore, based on ultrastructure, pigments and partial LSU rDNA sequences, the genus Lepidodinium was emended to encompass L. chlorophorum comb. nov.