Ca. Azoamicus ciliaticola detected in Lake Lugano

Ca. Azoamicus ciliaticola is the obligate endosymbiont of a ciliate related to the class plagiopylea. This endosymbiont respires nitrate and supplies energy in the form of ATP to its host. This type of interaction was called respiratory symbiosis. Freshwater is one of the most important habitats for these respiratory endosymbionts, but so far only the Swiss Lake Zug has been studied in detail for the presence of these endosymbionts. Here we report the detection of the respiratory endosymbiont Ca. A. ciliaticola in the anoxic hypolimnion of the freshwater Lake Lugano.