A MOLECULAR ANALYSIS OF ANALIPUS AND RALFSIA (PHAEOPHYCEAE) SUGGESTS THE ORDER ECTOCARPALES IS POLYPHYLETIC

We report partial 18S ribosomal DNA sequences of Analipus japonicus (H arvey) Wynne and Ralfsia fungiformis (Grunnerus) Setchell et Gardner. These sequences were compared with the corresponding sequences of 13 b rown algae representing six phaeophycean orders: Dictyotales, Ectocarp ales, Fucales, Laminariales, Sphacelariales, and Syringodermatales. Th ese 15 brown algae included 10 ectoearpoids representing nine ectoearp acean (sensu Gabrielson et ah. 1989) families: Chordariaceae, Dictyosi phonaceae, Ectocarpaceae, Elachistaceae, Heterochordariaceae, Leathesi aceae, Punctariaceae, Ralfsiaceae, and Scytosiphonaceae. We addressed the controversial taxonomic placement of A. japonicus and R. fungiform is in the Ectocarpales by analysis of DNA sequences. Neighbor-joining and maximum parsimony-inferred phylogenies provided evidence that A. j aponicus and R. fungiformis are not closely, associated with the other representatives of the Ectocarpales. Bootstrap analyses suggest polyp hyly of the order Ectocarpales (sensu Gabrielson et al.). However, our analysis failed to resolve the phylogenetic relationship between A. j aponicus and R. fungiformis. Our results suggest that the ectocarpoids are just as distantly related to A. japonicus and R. fungiformis as t hey are to members of the advanced orders Desmarestiales, Dictyotales, Fucales, Laminariales, Sphacelariales, and Syringodermatales.