Glaucophyte
The glaucophytes, also known as glaucocystophytes or glaucocystids, are a small group of freshwater unicellular algae,[1] less common today than they were during the Proterozoic.[2] Only 15 species have been described, but more species are likely to exist.[3] Together with the red algae (Rhodophyta) and the green algae plus land plants (Viridiplantae or Chloroplastida), they form the Archaeplastida. However, the relationships among the red algae, green algae and glaucophytes are unclear,[4] in large part due to limited study of the glaucophytes.[5]
| Glaucophyta | |
|---|---|
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| Glaucocystis sp. | |
Scientific classification 
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| (unranked): | Archaeplastida |
| Division: | Glaucophyta Skuja 1948 |
| Class | |
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| Synonyms | |
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The glaucophytes are of interest to biologists studying the development of chloroplasts because some studies suggest they may be similar to the original algal type that led to green plants and red algae in that they may be basal Archaeplastida.[1][6]
Unlike red and green algae, glaucophytes only have asexual reproduction.[7]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Patrick J. Keeling (2004). "Diversity and evolutionary history of plastids and their hosts". American Journal of Botany. 91 (10): 1481–1493. doi:10.3732/ajb.91.10.1481. PMID 21652304.
- ↑ Evolutionary Biology: A Plant Perspective
- ↑ The monoplastidic bottleneck in algae and plant evolution | Journal of Cell Science
- ↑ Jeffrey D. Palmer, Douglas E. Soltis & Mark W. Chase (2004). "The plant tree of life: an overview and some points of view". American Journal of Botany. 91 (10): 1437–1445. doi:10.3732/ajb.91.10.1437. PMID 21652302.
- ↑ Dawkins, Richard; Wong, Yan (2016). The Ancestor's Tale. ISBN 978-0544859937.
- ↑ Eunsoo Kim & Linda E. Graham (2008). Redfield, Rosemary Jeanne (ed.). "EEF2 Analysis Challenges the Monophyly of Archaeplastida and Chromalveolata". PLoS ONE. 3 (7): e2621. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0002621. PMC 2440802. PMID 18612431.
- ↑ Plants: A Very Short Introduction