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The World of Protozoa, Rotifera, Nematoda and Oligochaeta

Acaryophrya

Acaryophrya Andre, 1915 (ref. ID; 2013)

Class Kinetofragminophora: Subclass Gymnostomata: Order Prostomatida: Suborder Prostomatina: Family Holophryidae (ref. ID; 2013)

Synonym Balanophrya Kahl, 1930 (ref. ID; 2013)

[ref. ID; 2013]
Body oval or spherical, uniformly ciliated all over cell. There is a circular apical oral aperture borne at the end of a short but distinct apical process. Oral aperture leads to a tubular or conical cytopharynx which is supported by delicate trichites. Trichocysts often present beneath pellicle. Macronucleus rounded, contractile vacuole terminal. Most easily confused with Holophrya in which genus the oral aperture is flush with the apical surface and is not borne upon a short process.
Quote; Colin R. Curds "British and other freshwater ciliated protozoa Part I Ciliophora: Kinetofragminophora" Cambridge University Press, 1982 (ref. ID; 2013)

[ref. ID; 4779]
The genus Acaryophrya was first created by Andre (1915). Later Kahl (1926, 1927, 1930-35) described the new subgenus Balanophrya, including the species B. mamillata Kahl, 1927, B. collaris Kahl, 1926, and B. helenae (= Acaryophrya helenae) Andre, 1915. Corliss (1979) accepted the genus Acaryophrya (= Balanophrya) and claimed that it belongs to the family Holophryidae, order Prostomatida. Recently, Foissner (1984) pointed out that the genus Acaryophrya should not be included in the family Holophryidae but within the haptorids because of the structure of the argyrome and the existence of a dorsal brush. (ref. ID; 4779)
  1. Acaryophrya collaris Kahl, 1926 (ref. ID; 1619, 4779)
    Syn; Acaryophrya mamillata Kahl, 1927 (ref. ID; 4779); Acaryophrya sphaerica (ref. ID; 4779); Balanophrya collaris (ref. ID; 4779); Holophrya collaris (ref. ID; 4779)
  2. Acaryophrya helenae Andre, 1915 (ref. ID; 1619)
  3. Acaryophrya latericollaris Wang, 1930 (ref. ID; 1620)
  4. Acaryophrya mamillata Kahl, 1927 (ref. ID; 1620)
    See; Acaryophrya collaris (ref. ID; 4779)
  5. Acaryophrya sphaerica (Gelei) (ref. ID; 3698)
    See; Acaryophrya collaris (ref. ID; 4779)

Acaryophrya collaris Kahl, 1926 (ref. ID; 1619, 4779)

Synonym

Acaryophrya mamillata Kahl, 1927 (ref. ID; 4779); Acaryophrya sphaerica (ref. ID; 4779); Balanophrya collaris (ref. ID; 4779); Holophrya collaris (ref. ID; 4779)

Descriptions

Acaryophrya collaris is a ciliate with an oval or spherical shape and an average diameter of 90-120 um in stained specimens. The nuclear apparatus consists of a long and curved macronucleus and a rounded micronucleus close to it. The somatic infraciliature consists of 50-60 spiral kineties (average 54.3, SD=2.9) very close to each other. In these kineties the kinetosomes are also very close, especially at the anterior zone. The somatic kinetosomes bear short, thick kinetodesmal fibres and one parasomal sac situated at the left of each kinetosome. On the dorsal side of the ciliate body is an infraciliary zone made up of the anterior part of 10-12 somatic kineties. These kinetal segments contain pairs of kinetosomes which lie slightly obliquely to the antero-posterior axis. The more posterior kinetosome, situated on the left of each pair, contains a thin and long transverse fibre, whilst the more anterior kinetosome of each pair, situated to the right, bears a kinetodesmal fibre. The circumoral infraciliature is composed of 50-60 pairs of kinetosomes situated in the anterior extremes of the somatic kineties surrounding the oral aperture. We can observed that both kinetosomes of each circumoral pair have a kinetodesmal fibre. The nematodesmal fibres depart from the circumoral pairs of kinetosomes and enter the ciliate body. Attention should be drawn to the existence of a fibrillar tract surrounding the oral aperture. Finally we want to point out they existence of extrusomes distributed around the oral aperture and randomly on the ciliate surface. (ref. ID; 4779)

Comments

Balanophrya collaris Kahl, 1926 is certainly the same species that Gelei (1934) described as B. sphaerica in spite of the fact that Kahl (1926) wrongly diagnosed his species, probably based on an exconjugant. Therefore Acaryophrya collaris is 45-122 um in diameter and has 40-60 somatic kineties. The differences between the morphological characteristics given by the authors can be due to intraspecific variations of the different strains. Yet we are inclined to disagree with the statement of Dingfelder (1962) that this species can be included in the genus Holophrya, because of the kinetal segments on the dorsal side of the ciliate body, which he was probably unable to observe. Our data support the inclusion in the haptorids, as suggested by Foissner (1983). The circumoral pattern of pairs of kinetosomes at the anterior extremes of the somatic kineties is characteristic of species of the order Prostomatida (Grain et al. 1973; Puytorac & Grain 1976). In our stock 50-60 pairs of kinetosomes constitute the circumoral infraciliature, whilst Foissner (1983) found only 40 pairs of kinetosomes in A. sphaerica. We also observe the existence of kinetodesmal fibres associated with both kinetosomes of each circumoral pair. The number of somatic kineties in our stock (50-60) is also different from that given by Gelei (1938) and Foissner (1983) (40-50), and there are parasomal sacs on the anterior part of each somatic kinetosome. Finally, in A. collaris the dorsal brush is composed of 10-12 kinetal segments belonging to the anterior part of the dorsal somatic kineties. These kinetal segments are made up of oblique pairs of kinetosomes, as Foissner (1983) represents in his scheme. Besides, the most anterior kinetosome of each kinetodesmal segment presents its kinetodesmal fibre. (ref. ID; 4779)