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desmid

 
Dictionary: des·mid   (dĕs'mĭd) pronunciation
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n.
Any of various green unicellular freshwater algae of the family Desmidiaceae, often forming chainlike colonies.

[From New Latin Desmidiāceae, family name, from Desmidium, type genus, from Greek desmos, bond, from dein, to bind.]


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Britannica Concise Encyclopedia: desmid
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Desmid (Micrasterias), highly magnified
(click to enlarge)
Desmid (Micrasterias), highly magnified (credit: Winton Patnode — Photo Researchers)
Any of a group of one-celled, microscopic green algae characterized by great variation in cell shape. Typically the cell is divided symmetrically into semicells connected at a central point. Desmids are found worldwide, usually in acid bogs or lakes. Since most species have a limited range, the presence of specific desmids is helpful in characterizing water samples.

For more information on desmid, visit Britannica.com.

WordNet: desmid
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Note: click on a word meaning below to see its connections and related words.

The noun has one meaning:

Meaning #1: freshwater green algae

Wikipedia: Desmidiales
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Desmids

Micrasterias radiata
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Charophyta
Class: Zygnemophyceae
Order: Desmidiales
Families

Closteriaceae
Desmidiaceae
Gonatozygaceae
Peniaceae

Desmids are an order (Desmidiales) of green algae,[1] comprising around 40 genera and 5,000[2] to 6,000[3] species, found mostly but not exclusively in fresh water. Most are unicellular, and are divided into two compartments separated by a narrow bridge or isthmus. Desmids assume a variety of highly symmetrical and generally attractive shapes, which provide the basis for their classification. Each compartment has one chloroplast, and no flagella. Sexual reproduction occurs through a process of conjugation,[4] also found among the Zygnematales. These two groups are closely related, and may be united as the division Gamophyta. The desmids are sometimes treated as members of the Zygnematales, but more often given the separate order Desmidiales.

References

  1. ^ Gontcharov AA, Marin BA, Melkonian MA (January 2003). "Molecular phylogeny of conjugating green algae (Zygnemophyceae, Streptophyta) inferred from SSU rDNA sequence comparisons". J. Mol. Evol. 56 (1): 89–104. doi:10.1007/s00239-002-2383-4. PMID 12569426. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00239-002-2383-4. 
  2. ^ Van den Hoek, C., D. G. Mann, & H. M. Jahns, 1995. Algae:An Introduction to Phycology, page 468. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press). ISBN 0-521-30419-9
  3. ^ Brook, Alan J., 1981. The Biology of Desmids, page 1. (Berkeley: University of California Press). ISBN 0-520-04281-6
  4. ^ Kapraun DF (April 2007). "Nuclear DNA content estimates in green algal lineages: chlorophyta and streptophyta". Ann. Bot. 99 (4): 677–701. doi:10.1093/aob/mcl294. PMID 17272304. http://aob.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/pmidlookup?view=long&pmid=17272304. 

External links

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Classification of Archaeplastida / Plantae sensu lato
Rhodophyta
Glaucocystophyceae
Viridiplantae/
Plantae
sensu stricto
Desmidiales · Zygnematales
Search Wikispecies Wikispecies has information related to: Desmidiales

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Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 2006 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
WordNet. WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Desmidiales".  Read more