The zoospore of Synchytrium endobioticum

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Abstract
An ultrastructural study of the zoospore of the obligate plant parasitic chytrid Synchytrium endobioticum (Schilb.) Perc., the causal agent of potato wart disease, is presented. The uniflagellate zoospore of S. endobioticum is characterized ultrastructurally by (1) an even distribution of the ribosomes, (2) one large, anteriorly located lipid globule, (3) mitochondria that are gathered around the nucleus. (4) cytoplasmic microtubules associated with the functional kinetosome, (5) an extensive sheet of endoplasmic reticulum partially encapsulating most of the cellular organelles, and (6) a structure which may resemble a contractile vacuole. The ultrastructure of the zoospore of S. endobioticum is discussed in relation to other chytridiaceous zoospores studied; it is concluded that among the Chytridiales, differences in zoospore ultrastructure exist between species within the same genus (e.g., Phlyetochytrium) that are as great as those observed between different genera and even different families.