Mesostigma
Genus of algae
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Mesostigma is a genus of unicellular biflagellate freshwater green algae, with a single species Mesostigma viride, covered by an outer layer of basket‐like scales instead of a cell wall.[4][3] It is the only known genus in the class Mesostigmatophyceae[5] (and thus, the only genus in the family Mesostigmataceae[2] and the order Mesostigmatales[1]).
| Mesostigma viride | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Clade: | Archaeplastida |
| Clade: | Viridiplantae |
| Division: | Charophyta |
| Class: | Mesostigmatophyceae |
| Order: | Mesostigmatales Marin & Melkonian[1] |
| Family: | Mesostigmataceae Marin & Melkonian[2] |
| Genus: | Mesostigma Lauterborn[3] |
| Species: | M. viride |
| Binomial name | |
| Mesostigma viride Lauterborn[3] | |
Earlier studies were unable to resolve the position of the species, and it was often placed as a sister to all other green algae, as one of the basal members of the Streptophyta, close to Chaetosphaeridium.[6][7][8] More recent studies agree that Mesostigma and Chlorokybus form a clade, being the earliest diverging of the green plants, specifically within Charophytes.[9][10][11][12]
