Top Qs
Timeline
Chat
Perspective

Mastigoneme

Tubular "hairs" that cover the flagella of algae and assist in movement From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Mastigoneme
Remove ads

Mastigonemes are lateral "hairs" that attach to protistan flagella. Flimsy hairs attach to the flagella of euglenid flagellates, while stiff hairs occur in stramenopile and cryptophyte protists.[1] Stramenopile hairs are approximately 15 nm in diameter, and usually consist of flexible basal part that inserts into the cell membrane, a tubular shaft that itself terminates in smaller "hairs". They reverse the thrust caused when a flagellum beats. The consequence is that the cell is drawn into the water and particles of food are drawn to the surface of heterotrophic species.

Thumb
Schematic drawing of Cafeteria roenbergensis (Heterokonta: Bicosoecida) with two unequal (heterokont) flagella: an anterior straminipilous (with tubular tripartite mastigonemes) and a posterior smooth
Thumb
A chrysomonad (Heterokonta: Chrysophyceae) under TEM, with a smooth flagellum (1) and a long flagellum covered with mastigonemes (3)
Thumb
Two cryptomonads (Cryptophyceae) under SEM. Mastigonemes not visible.

Typology of flagella with hairs:[2][3][4][5][6]

  • whiplash flagella (= smooth, acronematic flagella): without hairs but may have extensions, e.g., in Opisthokonta
  • hairy flagella (= tinsel, flimmer, pleuronematic flagella): with hairs (= mastigonemes sensu lato), divided in:

Observations of mastigonemes using light microscopy dates from the nineteenth century.[7][8][9][10][11] Considered artifacts by some, their existence would be confirmed with electron microscopy.[12][13]

Remove ads

References

Loading related searches...

Wikiwand - on

Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.

Remove ads