The study of symbiosis and interactions between ciliates and algae: current status and future directions

Abstract:

Ubiquitous ciliate-algae symbiosis plays a key role in the water environment. In this review, we summarized the current knowledge on ecological functions of ciliate-algae symbiosis. Moreover, the steps of symbiosis establishment and the interactions between Paramecium bursaria and Chlorella sp., the symbiotic relationship and interaction between Mesodinium rubrum and cryptophytes were summarized. Furthermore, several key biological questions on ciliate-algae symbiosis were raised, including the molecular mechanisms of the functions of Paramecium digestive vacuole (DV) and perialgal vacuole (PV) membrane, the establishment process of the symbiosis between M. rubrum and cryptophytes, and the roles of M. rubrum in the symbiotic process. Finally, we prospected the future directions on ciliate-algae symbiosis study.