Auanema rhodensis
| Auanema rhodensis | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Nematoda |
| Class: | Chromadorea |
| Order: | Rhabditida |
| Family: | Rhabditidae |
| Genus: | Auanema |
| Species: | A. rhodensis |
| Binomial name | |
| Auanema rhodensis Kanzaki, Kiontke, Tanaka, Hirooka, Schwarz, Müller-Reichert, Chaudhuri & Pires da Silva, 2017[1] | |
Auanema rhodensis is a species of free-living, non-parasitic nematode in the family Rhabditidae. It belongs to the genus Auanema, whose members are notable for having three biological sexes: males, females, and hermaphrodites.[2][3]
The species was formally described in 2017 after being isolated from partially blood-fed deer ticks collected in the United States.[2]
Description
Auanema rhodensis is sexually dimorphic, with females measuring approximately 980 to 1,214 μm in length, while males measure between 595 and 737 μm.[2] Like other members of its genus, the species exhibits a trioecious reproductive system consisting of males, females, and self-fertile hermaphrodites.[2][3]
Biology
The species is free-living and feeds on microorganisms rather than parasitizing animal hosts. Although initially isolated from deer ticks, it is not considered a parasite of ticks.[2] Laboratory observations have shown that A. rhodensis is capable of consuming bacterial biofilm, a characteristic that may influence microbial communities in its natural habitat.[2]
Research
Auanema rhodensis has become an important model organism for studies of sex determination, chromosome evolution, and reproductive strategies. Its unusual three-sex reproductive system has made it valuable for investigating the evolution of mating systems and the genetics of sex chromosomes in nematodes.[3]
See also
References
- ↑ "Auanema rhodensis Kanzaki, Kiontke, Tanaka, Hirooka, Schwarz, Muller Reichert, Chaudhuri & Pires Da Silva, 2017". Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Retrieved 19 September 2025.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Kanzaki, Natsumi; Kiontke, Karin; Tanaka, Ryusei; Hirooka, Yuuri; Schwarz, Anna; Müller-Reichert, Thomas; Chaudhuri, Jyotiska; Pires-daSilva, Andre (2017-09-11). "Description of two three-gendered nematode species in the new genus Auanema (Rhabditina) that are models for reproductive mode evolution". Scientific Reports. 7 (1): 11135. Bibcode:2017NatSR...711135K. doi:10.1038/s41598-017-09871-1. PMC 5593846. PMID 28894108.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: unflagged free DOI (link) - 1 2 3 Tandonnet, Sophie; Koutsovoulos, Georgios D.; Adams, Sally; Cloarec, Delphine; Parihar, Manish; Blaxter, Mark L.; Pires-daSilva, Andre (2019-04-09). "Chromosome-Wide Evolution and Sex Determination in the Three-Sexed Nematode Auanema rhodensis". G3: Genes, Genomes, Genetics. 9 (4): 1211–1230. doi:10.1534/g3.119.0011. PMC 6469403. PMID 30770412.