AP BIOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -Ectocarpus is a filamentous brown alga belonging to the family Ectocarpaceae. It has a small mature thallus and a complete life cycle; for this reason, it serves as a model organism for the study of genomics of multicellular organisms.

Detailed explanation-2: -Ectocarpus is a genus of filamentous, marine brown algae. Brown algae belong to the stramenopiles, a large supergroup of organisms that are only distantly related to animals, land plants and fungi. Brown algae are also one of only a small number of eukaryotic lineages that have evolved complex multicellularity.

Detailed explanation-3: -Ectocarpus is a filamentous brown alga, which cell wall is composed mainly of alginates and fucans (80%), two non-crystalline polysaccharide classes.

Detailed explanation-4: -Brown Algae Classification and Examples The main orders are: Ectocarpales – e.g. Ectocarpus, etc. Laminariales – e.g. Laminaria, Macrocystis, Nerocystis (Giant Kelp), etc. Fucales – e.g. Fucus, Sargassum, etc.