Unveiling Westiellopsis akinetica: a novel species in the Iraqi habitat, and contrasting its distinctive attributes with Westiellopsis prolifica

Ali Muayad Sultan^¹✉ and Buthaina Abdul Aziz Hassan Al-Magdamy^²

 ^¹Biology Department, College of Education for Women, Tikrit University, Iraq

^²Biology Department College of Education for Pure Sciences, Ibn Al-Haytham, Baghdad University, Iraq

Received: July 24, 2023/ Revised: Aug 22, 2023/Accepted: Aug 23, 2023

(✉) Corresponding Author: alimusu82@tu.edu.iq

Abstract

This is the first record of a new species of cyanobacteria Westiellopsis akinetica in the Iraqi environment, Samples were collected on June 2013 and the existence of it was not documented before. We isolated and purified this species ten years ago in Iraq, but we couldn’t identify accurately based on all taxonomic handbooks. This is due to the species features being different from the other documented species in the available taxonomic lectures. It resembled many species by morphological characteristics such as Fischerella muscicola, Fischerella thermalis, Westiellopsis biateralis SA16. Westiellopsis interrupta, Westiellopsis persica SA33, Westiellopsis prolifica and Symphyonema bifilamentata. Describing a new species of the Westiellopsis genus to be named Westiellopsis akinetica sp by polyphasic approach. It’s a new species in the local environment, based on all local research published within Iraqi Academic Scientific Journals – IASJ and depending on the updated Iraqi checklists of local freshwater algal. It was isolated from the Iraqi Tigris River passing through Tikrit city. There may be confusion between Westiellopsis akinetica and Westiellopsis prolifica because of the similarity between their phenotypical characteristics, so the most important identify differences between them must be clarified, in terms of cell shape, heterocytes length, and lateral branch shape. further some of the physical and chemical properties of water were measured at sampling time; in addition, some activities of Westiellopsis akinetica were determined such as growth, Chlorophyll a content, Phycocyanin pigments and protein within 16 days.

Keywords: Cyanobacteria, Westiellopsis akinetica, Westiellopsis prolifica, Nostocales, Chlorophyll a, Protein.

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How to cite this article

Sultan, A. M. and Al-Magdamy, B. A. A. H. (2023). Unveiling Westiellopsis akinetica: A novel species in the Iraqi habitat, and contrasting its distinctive attributes with Westiellopsis prolifica. Microbial Science Archives, Vol. 3(3), 94-100. https://doi.org/10.47587/MSA.2023.3304

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