In this study, we find both sequence homology and pharmacological support for the presence of TRP-like channels in a eukaryotic
alveolate protist, and our results are consistent with their role in rapid mechanosensing as a part of predator avoidance behavior.
The expanded phylogenetic analyses also revealed that the divergent Cryptosporidium sugar transporters (Figure 1: clades 3 and 4) cluster closer to those of
alveolates (Figure 3).
SAR (Stramenopiles, This supergroup of supergroups is often
Alveolates and nicknamed SAR for its components.
The evolution of Stramenopiles and
Alveolates as derived by "substitution rate calibration" of small subunit ribosomal RNA.
The kinds of organisms detected from analysis of about 200 clones screened included Stramenopiles, 28%; Nematoda, 20%; Arthopoda, 20%;
Alveolates, 12%; Acantharea, 12%; and Crenarchaeota, 8%.
In our rRNA gene diversity survey of biofllm samples, we obtained sequences representing most of the major eukaryotic lineages, including the fungi, animals, green algae, land plants, stramenopiles, and
alveolates (Amaral Zettler, 2002).