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Prochloron

Generic name:PROCHLORON Lewin, 1977. Phycologia 16(2): 217 
Synonyms:
Diagnosis:
Lewin (1977): Prochloraceae: Prochloron: unicellulares, capsulatae aut sine capsula mucilaginosa visibili. Unicellulares, sphaericae, sine capsula mucilaginosa visibili. Usque adhuc unus solum repro-ductionis modus cognitus, id est, divisio in duas partes per constrictionem aequatorialem. Usque adhuc inventae solum ut cellulae in coloniis ascidiarum conviventes in oris maritimis.

Etymology:
Castenholz (2001): Pro.chlo'ron. Gr. prefix pro primitive; Gr. adj. chloros green; M.L. neut. n. Prochloron primitive green (cell).

Type species: Prochloron didemni (Lewin) Lewin 1977 [syn. : Synechocystis didemni Lewin 1975]
Descriptions:
Lewin (1977): Division. Prochlorophyta (Lewin, 1976). Prokaryotic algae resembling cyanophytes, from which they differ in
that they form chlorophylls a and b and lack accessory red or blue bilin pigments.

Class. Prochlorophyceae. With the characters of the division.
Order. Prochlorales. Unicellular or filamentous, branched or unbranched.
Family. Prochloraceae. Unicellular, encapsulated or not.
Genus. Prochloron. Unicellular, spherical, without evident mucilaginous sheath. Only form of reproduction so far observed: binary division, by equatorial constriction. So far, only found as extracellular symbionts of ascidians on marine shores.

Genotype differences, molecular data:
Reproduction strategies, life cycles, cell division:
Ultrastructure:
Lewin 1975 Lewin (1975:157)
Taxonomic position, higher hierarchy: 
Oscillatoriophycideae, Chrooccales, Prochloraceae
Ecology, ecophysiology, ecological significance:
Lewin (1976): It has so far only been found, perhaps as a facultative symbiont, associated with didemnid ascidians in marine litoral habitat.
Lewin (1975): It has only been found growing epizoically on calcified colonial ascidians (Didemnum spp.) in subtropical coastal waters.
Physiology and biochemistry:
Lewin (1975): The apparent absence of phycobilin pigments and the presence two chrophylls (separable by chromatography).
Distribution, endemism, problematic citations:
Lewin (1975): Mangrove swamps in Baja California, Mexico.
Reference strain:
Castenholz (2001): Not yet been cultured.
Infrageneric scheme, species concept:
List of species:
Prochloron didemni (Lewin) Lewin 1977
Keys:
List of stains:
Drawings, images:
Lewin 1975   Lewin 1975  Lewin (1977: 155-156)
Application technology:
Literature:
  2.1 taxonomy: Castenholz 2001, Griffiths & Thinh 1989, Lewin 1975, Lewin & Cheng 1975, Lewin 1976, Lewin 1977, Lewin 1984, Urbach et al. 1992
  2.2 cytomorphology: Schulz-Baldes & Lewin 1976
  2.3 16S rRNA sequencing: Wilmotte & Herdman 2001
  2.4 biology and life cycles:
  2.5 ecology: Lewin, Cheng & Alberte 1984