Oodinium dogieli

Diagnosis_Genus: Oodinium Chatton 1912. External parasite of tunicates, chaetognaths and possibly polychaetes. The trophont is sac-like and is attached to the host by a stout peduncle with a very large, flat attachment surface closely adhering to but not penetrating into the epithelial cells of the hosts. The cell membrane of the attachment surface has numerous thin and long invaginations serving for increased absorption of the nutrients by osmotrophy. There are no chloroplasts, the trophont's theca has plates filling its alveoli and constituting together the dinoflagellate armour of the cell. There are no starch grains. The nucleus contains stout coiled chromosomes only in young individuals. The dinospore is a gymnospore. (Lom 1981).
Diagnosis_Species: Oodinium dogieli Cachon & Cachon 1971. Ectoparasite of Alciope sp. (annelid) and spionid.  Doubtful species (Chatton 1920).