Morphology and phylogenetic position of a freshwater Prasiola species (Prasiolales, Chlorophyta) in Korea

Abstract

The genus of leafy green algae, Prasiola Meneghini, includes marine, terrestrial, and freshwater species. A total of 11 species and one variety have been identified in China, Korea, and Japan. In Korea, Prasiola formosana var. coreana has been reported in Muncheon, North Korea, while a different type of Prasiola species has been reported in South Korea. The South Korean species has been found growing along a small stream originating from Chodanggul Cave, a limestone cave in Samcheok, Gangwon Province. Here, we revised the morphological characteristics of the South Korean Prasiola species and analyzed plastid rbcL, psaB, and tufA genes to clarify its identity. Although the external and anatomical morphologies varied among individuals, our results were very similar to previous reports. Plastid three genes sequences of the South Korean specimens were identical to those of P. japonica collected from Japan as well as to published sequences of P. yunnanica from China. A short rbcL-3P sequence (196 bp) from P. formosana var. coreana, which was identified in the type specimen, was also identical to a sequence from P. japonica. These Prasiola species and variety from Korea, Japan, and China are all distributed in areas characterized by limestone bedrock. Based on morphological, phylogenetic, and distributional features, the South Korean Prasiola species is regarded herein as P. japonica. Here, we also propose to synonymize P. formosana var. coreana and P. yunnanica with P. japonica.

Prasiola (Prasiolales, Trebouxiophyceae) in Japan: a survey of freshwater populations and new records of marine taxa

“…Kim et al . () recently identified P. japonica in Korea, and synonymized P. yunnanica with P. japonica , based on identical rbc L, tuf A and psa B sequence data among specimens of both species. Our data support their conclusion.…”

Morphological and habitat characteristics of Prasiola fluviatilis (Prasiolales, Trebouxiophyceae, Chlorophyta) from the Altai Mountains, Mongolia

“…Cellular and ultrastructural characters and molecular analysis support the idea that Prasiolales is a monophyletic well-defi ned order and has a relationship with the Trebouxiophyceae, Chlorophyta (Garbary & Hill, 2017;Heesch et al, 2016;Moniz et al, 2012;Pang et al, 2021). A total of 37 species have been reported in the green algal genus Prasiola (Guiry & Guiry, 2022), with as many as 14 documented as freshwater organisms (Moniz et al, 2012), and 11 of which are reported in Asia (Kim et al, 2015;Pang et al, 2021). The genus is characterized by a monostromatic, foliose blade; a stellate chloroplast with a central pyrenoid; and a unique type of life history, where diploid thalli can form either diploid spores or haploid gametes within the thallus resulting in a haploid apex and diploid base (Lee, 2008).…”

“…The genus is characterized by a monostromatic, foliose blade; a stellate chloroplast with a central pyrenoid; and a unique type of life history, where diploid thalli can form either diploid spores or haploid gametes within the thallus resulting in a haploid apex and diploid base (Lee, 2008). Species of Prasiolia are macroscopic, benthic green algae and distributed in freshwater (Rodríguez & Jiménez, 2005;Kim et al, 2015), marine (Moniz et al, 2012), and terrestrial habitats (Rindi et al, 1999(Rindi et al, , 2004. They seem to be notable primary producers specifi cally in extremely harsh Arctic, Antarctic, and subarctic environments with very low temperature, freeze and thaw cycles, severe wind events, nutrient limitations, low humidity, and desiccation (Rindi et al, 1999, Sherwood et al, 2000Heesch et al, 2016;Klochkova et al, 2017;Broady, 1989;McKnight et al, 1998, Kováčik & Pereira, 2001, Carvalho et al, 2017Jacob et al, 1992).…”

Chloroform Fraction of Prasiola japonica Ethanolic Extract Alleviates UPM 1648a-Induced Lung Injury by Suppressing NF-κB Signaling

“…A total of 36 species of the genus Prasiola have been reported, of which 14 are freshwater species [2]. In Korea, Park et al found a Prasiola species in Samcheok, Gangwon-do, in 1970 [3], and this was later identified as P. japonica, distributed in Korea and Japan as traditionally edible algae [4]. Pharmaceutical benefits such as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and skin-protective effects have been confirmed in various in vitro and in vivo models [5][6][7].…”