The phylogenetic position of the slime-mould genus Lamproderma (Myxomycetes, Amoebozoa) challenges traditional taxonomy: although it displays the typical characters of the order Stemonitales, it appears to be sister to Physarales. This study provides a small subunit (18S or SSU) ribosomal RNA gene-based phylogeny of Lamproderma and its allies, with new sequences from 49 specimens in 12 genera. We found that the order Stemonitales and Lamproderma were both ancestral to Physarales and that Lamproderma constitutes several clades intermingled with species of Diacheopsis, Colloderma and Elaeomyxa. We suggest that these genera may have evolved from Lamproderma by multiple losses of fruiting body stalks and that many taxonomic revisions are needed. We found such high genetic diversity within three Lamproderma species that they probably consist of clusters of sibling species. We discuss the contrasts between genetic and morphological divergence and implications for the morphospecies concept, highlighting the phylogenetically most reliable morphological characters and pointing to others that have been overestimated. In addition, we showed that the first part (∼600 bases) of the SSU rDNA gene is a valuable tool for phylogeny in Myxomycetes, since it displayed sufficient variability to distinguish closely related taxa and never failed to cluster together specimens considered of the same species.

Myxomycetes are organisms characterized by a life cycle that includes a fruiting body stage. Myxomycete fruiting bodies contain spores, and wind dispersal of the spores is considered important for this organism to colonize new areas. In this study, the presence of airborne myxomycetes and the temporal changes in the myxomycete composition of atmospheric particles (aerosols) were investigated with a polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based method for Didymiaceae and Physaraceae. Twenty-one aerosol samples were collected on the roof of a three-story building located in Sapporo, Hokkaido Island, northern Japan. PCR analysis of DNA extracts from the aerosol samples indicated the presence of airborne myxomycetes in all the samples, except for the one collected during the snowfall season. Denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) analysis of the PCR products showed seasonally varying banding patterns. The detected DGGE bands were subjected to sequence analyses, and four out of nine obtained sequences were identical to those of fruiting body samples collected in Hokkaido Island. It appears that the difference in the fruiting period of each species was correlated with the seasonal changes in the myxomycete composition of the aerosols. Molecular evidence shows that newly formed spores are released and dispersed in the air, suggesting that wind-driven dispersal of spores is an important process in the life history of myxomycetes. This study is the first to detect airborne myxomycetes with the use of molecular ecological analyses and to characterize their seasonal distribution.

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In spite of the ecological importance of protists, very little data is available on their distribution in soil. This investigation is the first of its kind on what could be the major components of the soil protistan community, the Myxomycetes, or plasmodial slime-moulds, a monophyletic class in the phylum Amoebozoa. Myxomycetes have a complex life cycle culminating in the formation of mainly macroscopic fruiting bodies, highly variable in shape and colour, which can be found in every terrestrial biome. Despite their prevalence, they are paradoxically absent from environmental DNA sampling studies. We obtained myxomycete SSU rRNA gene sequences from soil-extracted RNAs using specific primers. Soil samples were collected in three mountain ranges (France, Scotland and Japan). Our study revealed an unexpectedly high diversity of dark-spored Myxomycetes, with the recovery of 74 phylotypes. Of these, 74% had < 98% identity with known sequences, showing a hidden diversity; there was little overlap between localities, implying biogeographical patterns. Few phylotypes were dominant and many were unique, consistent with the 'rare biosphere' phenomenon. Our study provides the first detailed insight into the community composition of this ecologically important group of protists, establishing means for future studies of their distribution, abundance and ecology.

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