Dunaliellaceae is a

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

algae Algae ( , ; : alga ) is an informal term for any organisms of a large and diverse group of photosynthesis, photosynthetic organisms that are not plants, and includes species from multiple distinct clades. Such organisms range from unicellular ...

in the order

Chlamydomonadales Chlamydomonadales, also known as Volvocales, are an order of flagellated or pseudociliated green algae, specifically of the Chlorophyceae.See the NCBIbr>webpage on Chlamydomonadales Data extracted from the Chlamydomonadales can form planar o ...

. It is widespread in freshwater and saline environments worldwide, less so in marine waters. Members of the family Dunaliellaceae are single-celled, flagellate algae. They are of various shapes (most commonly spheroidal, less commonly flattened), without sharp edges, ribs or processes. The periplast lacks

cell wall A cell wall is a structural layer that surrounds some Cell type, cell types, found immediately outside the cell membrane. It can be tough, flexible, and sometimes rigid. Primarily, it provides the cell with structural support, shape, protection, ...

s or other coverings, such as scales, and are thus flexible to varying degrees. Two or four flagella are present. The

chloroplast A chloroplast () is a type of membrane-bound organelle, organelle known as a plastid that conducts photosynthesis mostly in plant cell, plant and algae, algal cells. Chloroplasts have a high concentration of chlorophyll pigments which captur ...

is variable in shape, and a both a

pyrenoid Pyrenoids are sub-cellular phase-separated micro-compartments found in chloroplasts of many algae,Giordano, M., Beardall, J., & Raven, J. A. (2005). CO2 concentrating mechanisms in algae: mechanisms, environmental modulation, and evolution. ''An ...

and stigma may be present or absent; some taxa are colorless and lack

s (or at least they are reduced to leucoplasts). Reproduction occurs by cell division, which begins at the apex of the cell. Dunaliellaceae, as currently circumscribed, is

polyphyletic A polyphyletic group is an assemblage that includes organisms with mixed evolutionary origin but does not include their most recent common ancestor. The term is often applied to groups that share similar features known as Homoplasy, homoplasies ...

. A systematic revision is underway that includes molecular data to better reflect phylogenetic relationships. Currently, both the traditional name Dunaliellaceae is in use, along with names for various clades, named using ''

PhyloCode The ''International Code of Phylogenetic Nomenclature'', known as the ''PhyloCode'' for short, is a formal set of rules governing phylogenetic nomenclature. Its current version is specifically designed to regulate the naming of clades, leaving the ...

''.

Genera

As accepted by

GBIF The Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) is an international organisation that focuses on making scientific data on biodiversity available via the Internet using web services. The data are provided by many institutions from around the ...

; * '' Aulacomonas'' (1) * ''

Dunaliella ''Dunaliella'' is a single-celled, photosynthetic Green algae, green alga, that is characteristic for its ability to outcompete other organisms and thrive in Hypersaline lake, hypersaline environments. It is mostly a marine organism, though there ...

'' (5) * '' Hafniomonas'' (2) * '' Phyllocardium'' (1) * '' Polytomella'' (3) * '' Quadrichloris'' (1) * '' Spermatozopsis'' (1) Figures in brackets are approx. how many species per genus. Uncertain genera, (with no listed species); ''Apiochloris'' , ''Chloronephris'' , ''Hyaliella'' , ''Hyalocardium'' , ''Medusochloris'' , ''Papenfussiomonas'' , ''Platella'' , ''Silvamonas'' and ''Ulochloris''

References

Chlorophyceae families Chlamydomonadales {{Chlorophyceae-stub