Phylogenetic Analysis Reveals that the ‘Radial Centric’ Diatom Orthoseira Thwaites (Orthoseiraceae, Bacillariophyta) is a Member of a ‘Multipolar’ Diatom Lineage

Abstract

The diatom genus Orthoseira Thwaites (Bacillariophyta) is a ubiquitous taxon in aerial diatom assemblages, with species found globally. Cylindrical cell shape and radial symmetry of this genus has led to its historical placement in the Coscinodiscophyceae ('radial centric' diatoms), but its systematic relationships have remained uncertain. We present a five-gene phylogeny, based on nuclear (nSSU rDNA) and chloroplast (rbcL, psbC, psbA, and psaB) genes to determine the phylogenetic placement of Orthoseira among the diatoms. The concatenated multi-gene phylogenies and nSSU-only gene tree demonstrate that Orthoseira is deeply embedded within a clade of the Mediophyceae ('multipolar centric' diatoms). Throughout all phylogenetic analyses, Orthoseira was shown to be sister to the genera Terpsinoë and Hydrosera. Through comparison of topologies reflecting competing hypotheses about the placement of Orthoseira, it was determined that the hypothesis that Orthoseira, represented here by O. dendroteres and O. roeseana, is a member of the Melosirales should be rejected. Therefore, lack of morphological similarity between Hydrosera, Orthoseira, and Terpsinoë is hypothesized to be the result of changes in habitat preferences that lead to an ancient divergence event between the Orthoseirales and the Hydrosera, Terpsinoë clade.