''Cyanophora paradoxa'' is a freshwater species of

Glaucophyte The glaucophytes, also known as glaucocystophytes or glaucocystids, are a small group of unicellular algae found in freshwater and moist terrestrial environments, less common today than they were during the Proterozoic. The stated number of speci ...

that is used as a model organism. ''C. paradoxa'' has two

cyanelle The glaucophytes, also known as glaucocystophytes or glaucocystids, are a small group of unicellular algae found in freshwater and moist terrestrial environments, less common today than they were during the Proterozoic. The stated number of speci ...

s or

chloroplast A chloroplast () is a type of membrane-bound organelle known as a plastid that conducts photosynthesis mostly in plant and algal cells. The photosynthetic pigment chlorophyll captures the energy from sunlight, converts it, and stores it ...

s where

photosynthesis Photosynthesis is a process used by plants and other organisms to convert light energy into chemical energy that, through cellular respiration, can later be released to fuel the organism's activities. Some of this chemical energy is stored i ...

occurs. Cyanelles are unusual organelles in that they retain a rudimentary peptidoglycan wall. The cyanelle

genome In the fields of molecular biology and genetics, a genome is all the genetic information of an organism. It consists of nucleotide sequences of DNA (or RNA in RNA viruses). The nuclear genome includes protein-coding genes and non-coding ...

of ''C. paradoxa'' strain LB 555 was

sequenced In genetics and biochemistry, sequencing means to determine the primary structure (sometimes incorrectly called the primary sequence) of an unbranched biopolymer. Sequencing results in a symbolic linear depiction known as a sequence which succi ...

and published in 1995. The nuclear genome was also sequenced and published in 2012.

Description

''Cyanophora paradoxa'' is a unicellular organism with two

flagella A flagellum (; ) is a hairlike appendage that protrudes from certain plant and animal sperm cells, and from a wide range of microorganisms to provide motility. Many protists with flagella are termed as flagellates. A microorganism may have f ...

, attached near the tip of the cell. The cell body is about 7-15 μm long by 3-6 μm wide; it is roughly ovoid (egg-shaped) in shape, and is covered in ridges that outline triangular or crescent-shaped "fenestrations". Each cell generally has one or two cyanelles.

References

Archaeplastida Species described in 1924 {{Bikont-stub