Thalassiosira pseudonana

Class: Coscinodiscophyceae T. pseudonana was the first eukaryotic marine phytoplankton to have its genome sequenced1. This cosmopolitan centric diatom shares only a little more than half of its genome with the pennate diatom P. tricornutum, indicating significant evolutionary diversity between the two organisms. Cells are ca. 5-7 um in length and 4-5 um wide. 1 Armbrust, V.E., J.A. Berges, C. Bowler, B.R. Green, D. Martinez, N. H. Putnam, S. Zhou, A.E. Allen, K.E. Apt, M. Bechner, M.A. Brzezinski, B.K. Chaal, A. Chiovitti, A.K. Davis, M.S. Demarest, J.C. Detter, T. Glavina, et al. (2004). The Genome of the Diatom Thalassiosira Pseudonana: Ecology, Evolution, and Metabolism. Science 306: 79-86. (Preceding Page Photo Credit: Abby Heithoff, Dyhrman Lab, WHOI, 2010. 63X oil immersion of CCMP1335. Copyright Dyhrman Lab, WHOI.)