The Protist Thread

[Psi Wavefunction]

I can vaguely recall having set one up on RD.net a long time ago...

Let's explore the wonderful kingdom Protista! (even though it's not actually a natural category... <_<)


(Keeling et al. 2005 Trends Ecol Evol)

Protist = all of the above - land plants, animals, fungi

Can I jgo through single forum without whipping out the Keeling Tree at some random occasion?


Ok, first one will likely be familiar:



Diatom. Important for marine photosynthesis.

The shell consists of two parts -- one bigger than the other. When they divide, both halves become the top (bigger) part of the new cell, with a brand new bottom half forming. This means that with each division, one of the cells actually gets smaller! This results in a population of smaller and smaller diatoms... so how do they get around that?

Well, the ultimate solution to all life's problems: SEX.
They fuck, and make a brand new shell with proper-sized halves. And then the process repeats...

[Trolldor]

Finally, science in language I can dig.

[ScholasticSpastic]

I haz diatoms and things in ma fishtank (pictured 400x).

I also learned that amoebas only look cool if you can see them move. Still pictures of amoebas suck.

Not a protist, but I found a dead mite while I was poking around my tank sediment:

I also found a very, very small worm (the clearish enongated shape near center below):


Here are some pictures of moss:
400x

100x

40x

[The Curious Squid]

I think I actually love this thread already.

Psi, can you elaborate a bit on what your Diatom actually does? Why is it important?

Spaz, those pics are beautiful.

[Psi Wavefunction]

Spaz, I was about to ask about your avatar:

"Is that a diatom in you avatar or are you just happy to see me?"





Nice pics! Perhaps I shall post some of mine soon...

Did you see any of the diatoms move? They have this cool gliding motility system where they have a bit of an anchor/conveyor belt -like setup, only on a molecular level! Have you heard of it? The malaria parasite moves in a similar way...


Paco,

Diatoms are a marine alga, so they act like plants in that ecosystem, fixing carbon and being eaten by predators. There's also other things that act like plants, but in some ecosystems diatoms are the major producer. I think I heard they do something like 20% of the world's photosynthesis, if I'm not getting my numbers drastically mixed up... that's quite a bit for a tiny thing in a glass shell!

Also, their empty shells form thick sediment on the ocean floor, eventually ending up as diatomaceous earth, which is mined and used in things like toothpaste and dynamite. So this organism actually has direct economic value for us!

[Psi Wavefunction]

Randomly hijacked our scope one day to look at the water from wet moss: (a whole ecosystem in its own right!)

[ScholasticSpastic]

"Is that a diatom in you avatar or are you just happy to see me?"

Well, now that you mention it, my shell feels a bit snug. Only one thing for it!

[ScholasticSpastic]

Randomly hijacked our scope one day to look at the water from wet moss: (a whole ecosystem in its own right!)

Are those phase contrast? Fantastic pics!

[atrasicarius]

Wait, did you say Protist? Whoops, wrong thread. Sorry, carry on.

[JimC]

Protists are great!

1. I love watching Paramecium busily cruising around in a drop of pondwater!

2. Foraminifera are a favorite! My dad wrote many scientific papers on their classification. Here are some of the illustrations he did (unfortunately a photo of an old, yellowed copy, but it's all I have...)

[ScholasticSpastic]

I'm quite fond of chlamydomonas and their similarly-celled ilk. Volvox is da shit.

[Trolldor]

*snicker* Volvox...
It sounds like Vulva.

[Psi Wavefunction]

Randomly hijacked our scope one day to look at the water from wet moss: (a whole ecosystem in its own right!)

Are those phase contrast? Fantastic pics!

DIC (Namarski Phase Contrast) using a $40K scope
The quality of optics makes a huge difference -- using normal 'student' scopes pisses me off now, especially the ones in undergrad labs that have been abused beyond recognition. Those make my soul cry How hard is it to wipe oil off the 100x, ffs? And how the fuck do you get it on the 40x!?




(Don't be too lazy to adjust brightness + readjust the Kohler illumination pathway when changing objectives! )

[Psi Wavefunction]

*snicker* Volvox...
It sounds like Vulva.

Then there's Ulva:

[Trolldor]

*sigh*

I love science... It's dirty without meaning to be.... well, usually without meaning to be.