Phylogeny of the families Zoothamniidae and Epistylididae (Protozoa: Ciliophora: Peritrichia) based on analyses of three rRNA-coding regions

- Phylogeny of some peritrichs was investigated using information from three genes.
- Epistylididae is polyphyletic, and partly nests within the Zoothamniidae.
- Zoothamnium is probably paraphyletic, consisting of three divergent clades.
- Some Myoschiston, Zoothamnopsis and Epistylis species are derived from Zoothamnium.

Peritrichs are a major group of ciliates with worldwide distribution, and they play important roles in many habitats. Intrafamilial phylogeny of some peritrichs was investigated using information from three genes, which provided more robust interpretations than single-gene analyses. Sixty-seven new sequences including SSU rDNA, ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 and LSU rDNA were aligned with available sequences in GenBank to infer phylogenetic relationships within the families Zoothamniidae and Epistylididae. Results reveal the following relationships: (1) Epistylididae is polyphyletic, consisting of two clades that nest within the Zoothamniidae as part of the crown clade of peritrichs (order Vorticellida) and a third one that is part of the basal clade of peritrichs (order Opercularida); (2) Epistylis elongata falls within one of the clades of Zoothamnium rather than with congeners; (3) Zoothamnium is probably paraphyletic, consisting of three divergent clades, with the genera Myoschiston and Zoothamnopsis intermingled with species of Zoothamnium. The following evolutionary hypotheses can be inferred from these results: (1) the contractile stalk of Zoothamnium is plesiomorphic. (2) Myoschiston, Zoothamnopsis and clade II of Epistylididae are derived from the Zoothamnium morphotype by partial or incomplete development of the spasmoneme that forms the contractile center of the stalk around which the rigid cortex is secreted. (3) Clade I of the Epistylididae, which are primarily colonial forms that appear never to have evolved a spasmoneme of any sort, may represent the ancestral morphotype of peritrichs.