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A New Molecular Approach Based on the Secondary Structure of Ribosomal RNA for Phylogenetic Analysis of Mobilid Ciliates

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Abstract

We analyzed the secondary structure of the small subunit (SSU) rRNA genes of Mobilida (Ciliophora, Peritrichia) and found that the secondary structures of some regions within the SSU-rRNA gene are distinct between the families Trichodinidae and Urceolariidae. Therefore, some of these important regions including H10, H11, H17, H47, H29, H30, H37, E10-1, H45-H46, and V4 (E23-4, E23-7) could be used as the barcodes for classification of these two families. In contrast, V4 (E23-1, E23-2) belongs to a hypervariable region and is not a good barcode at the genus level because of its great inter-specific variation. Our results indicated that the comprehensive analysis of the secondary structure of SSU-rRNA genes is a reliable auxiliary approach for phylogenic study of mobilid ciliates. It was further found that the coevolution between hosts or habitats and the Mobilida ciliates was existent, because the host types and their habitats were critical ecological factors that influenced the evolution of Mobilida ciliates.

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Acknowledgements

This present work was supported by grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 31672280, 31471980) and the project of Chongqing Science and Technology Commission (No. cstc2010ca1010).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Chongqing Key Laboratory of Animal Biology, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, 401331, People’s Republic of China

    Yan-Hong Du, Yuan-Jun Zhao & Fa-Hui Tang

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  1. Yan-Hong Du
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  2. Yuan-Jun Zhao
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  3. Fa-Hui Tang
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Correspondence to Fa-Hui Tang.

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Du, YH., Zhao, YJ. & Tang, FH. A New Molecular Approach Based on the Secondary Structure of Ribosomal RNA for Phylogenetic Analysis of Mobilid Ciliates. Curr Microbiol 75, 296–304 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00284-017-1379-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00284-017-1379-7