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Phylogenetic relationships of the intercellular fish pathogenIchthyophonus hoferi and fungi, choanoflagellates and the rosette agent

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Abstract

Ichthyophonus hoferi Plehn and Mulsow, 1911 is thought to be one of the few pathogenic fungal infections of marine fish. The result of an attack is severe epizootics in herring stocks with drastic reduction in the population as a consequence. The exact phylogenetic position of the genusIchthyophonus is not known. In the present study, a combination of molecular data, ultrastructure and biochemical characters were utilized to investigate the phylogeny ofI.hoferi. The genomic DNA encoding the small subunit ribosomal RNA (18S rRNA) was amplified and sequenced. Comparisons with other eukaryotic 18S rRNA sequences indicate thatI. hoferi is not a member of the Fungi. In both the parsimony and the neighborjoining trees,I. hoferi is the sister taxon to the rosette agent. The clade encompassingI.hoferi and the rosette organism is the sister group to the chanoflagellate clade in the neighbor-joining tree, while in the parsimony tree theI. hoferi/rosette clade is equally distant to both the choanoflagellate and animal clades. Transmission electron microscopy showed thatI. hoferi has a defined cell wall, an endoplasm that consists of a fine granulated matrix with numerous ribosomes, several nuclei, vacuoles of varying density distributed throughout the cell, and mitochondria with tubular cristae. The cell wall ofI. hoferi contains chitin.

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Author notes

  1. J. W. Taylor

    Present address: Department of Mycology, Botanical Institute, University of Copenhagen, DK-0000, Copenhagen, Denmark

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Danish Institute for Fisheries Research, Department of Seafood Research, Danish Technical University, Building 221, DK-2800, Lyngby, Denmark

    B. Spanggaard

  2. Department of Plant Biology, University of California, Koshland Hall, Room 111, 94720, Berkeley, California, USA

    J. W. Taylor

  3. Biotechnological Institute, Lundtoftevej 100, Building 227, P.O. Box 199, DK-2800, Lyngby, Denmark

    P. Skouboe & L. Rossen

Authors
  1. B. Spanggaard
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  2. P. Skouboe
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  3. L. Rossen
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  4. J. W. Taylor
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Communicated by L. Hagerman, Helsingør

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Spanggaard, B., Skouboe, P., Rossen, L. et al. Phylogenetic relationships of the intercellular fish pathogenIchthyophonus hoferi and fungi, choanoflagellates and the rosette agent. Mar. Biol. 126, 109–115 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00571382

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