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Updated: Jun 6, 2026
15:27
Extracting DNA from the Gut Microbes of the Termite (Zootermopsis Angusticollis) and Visualizing Gut Microbes
Published on: May 28, 2007
Extreme morphological divergence: phylogenetic position of a termite ectoparasite
Meredith Blackwell1, Daniel A Henk, Kevin G Jones
1Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70803.
Mycologia
|December 15, 2010
Summary
Termitaria snyderi, a termite ectoparasite, is closely related to ascomycetes Kathistes species. Molecular phylogenetic analysis using ssu rDNA and ß-tubulin genes clarifies its evolutionary position.
Area of Science:
- Mycology
- Entomology
- Evolutionary Biology
Background:
- Termitaria are worldwide ectoparasites of termites, characterized by lesion formation.
- Morphological studies of Termitaria snyderi have not resolved its phylogenetic placement.
- The organism exhibits a reduced thallus with haustorial cells and a sporodochium.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the phylogenetic position of Termitaria snyderi.
- To investigate the evolutionary relationship between T. snyderi and other fungal groups.
- To utilize molecular data to resolve taxonomic uncertainties.
Main Methods:
- Phylogenetic analysis of molecular characters.
- Sequencing of the nuclear-encoded small-subunit ribosomal RNA gene (ssu rDNA).
- Supplemental analysis using the ß-tubulin gene.
- Tree reconstruction using parsimony and maximum-likelihood methods.
- Support assessment via Bayesian analysis and parsimony bootstrap.
Main Results:
- Evidence indicates a close phylogenetic relationship between T. snyderi and ascomycetes Kathistes analemmoides and K. calyculata.
- Molecular data resolves the enigmatic phylogenetic position of T. snyderi.
- Phylogenetic trees support the placement of T. snyderi within the Ascomycota.
Conclusions:
- Termitaria snyderi is phylogenetically allied with morphologically distinct ascomycetes.
- Molecular phylogenetics provides crucial insights into the classification of parasitic fungi.
- This study refines our understanding of fungal diversity and evolution in association with termites.
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