Plastid (pt)DNA of the chlorophyte alga Prototheca wickerhamii

Prototheca species are the only known plant organisms to possess pathogenic potential for both humans and animals. The aim of the project is to perform a preliminary sequencing analysis of the plastid genome of an achlorphyllous alga Prototheca wickerhamii, a major etiological agent of human protothecosis. The project is the pilot study and the first step to open a large project of sequencing the entire genome of P. wickerhamii, in order to identify genes that might be associated with pathogenicity and virulence of this organism.