Irena Kaczmarska
Publications
Selected publications:
Kaczmarska, I. & J.M. Ehrman. 2024. Silicoflagellates and other siliceous micro- and nannofossils from Rupelian diatomites, southeastern Poland. Plant and Fungal Systematics 61:1-14.
Kaczmarska, I. & J.M. Ehrman. 2023. Parmalean and other siliceous nannofossils from the Oligocene Flysch Carpathians. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 68: 441-456.
Kaczmarska, I., J.M. Ehrman & M.P. Ashworth. 2022. Sexual reproduction and auxospore development in the diatom Biddulphia biddulphiana. PLoS ONE 17: e0272778.
Kaczmarska, I., J.M. Ehrman, K.E. Mills, S.G. Sutcliffe & B. Samanta 2022. Vegetative cell enlargement in selected centric diatom species - an alternative way to propagate an individual genotype. European Journal of Phycology 58: 315-332.
Kaczmarska, I. & J.M Ehrman. 2021. Enlarge or die! An auxospore perspective on diatom diversification. Organisms Diversity & Evolution 21: 1-23.
Kaczmarska, I., J.M. Ehrman, N.A. Davidovich, O.I. Davidovich & Y.A. Podunay. 2020. Valve morphogenesis in selected centric diatoms. Botany 98: 725-733.
Samanta, B., I. Kaczmarska & J.M. Ehrman. 2020. Auxosporulation in Biddulphia tridens (Ehrenb.) Ehrenb. (Mediophyceae, Bacillariophyta). European Journal of Phycology 55: 296-309.
Kaczmarska, I., B. Samanta, J.M. Ehrman & E.M.A. Porcher. 2019. Auxosporulation in Chaetoceros acadianus sp. nov. (Bacillariophyceae), a new member of the Section Compressa. European Journal of Phycology 54: 206-221.
Samanta, B., J.M. Ehrman & I. Kaczmarska. 2018. A consensus secondary structure of ITS2 for the diatom Order Cymatosirales (Mediophyceae, Bacillariophyta) and reappraisal of the order based on DNA, morphology, and reproduction. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 129: 117-129.
Samanta, B., Q. Heffell, J.M. Ehrman & I. Kaczmarska. 2018. Spermatogenesis in the bipolar centric diatom Plagiogrammopsis vanheurckii (Mediophyceae). Phycologia 57: 354-359.
Davidovich, N.A., O.I. Davidovich, Y.A. Podunay, R. Gastineau, I. Kaczmarska, A. Poulíčková, & A. Witkowski. 2017. Ardissonea crystallina has a type of sexual reproduction that is unusual for centric diatoms. Scientific Reports 7: 14670.
Kaczmarska, I., B.S. Gray Jr., J.M. Ehrman & M. Thaler. 2017. Sexual reproduction in plagiogrammacean diatoms: first insights into the early pennates. PLoS ONE 12: e0181413.
Samanta, B., M.E. Kinney, Q. Heffell, J.M. Ehrman & I. Kaczmarska. 2017. Gametogenesis and auxospore development in the bipolar centric diatom Brockmanniella brockmannii (Family Cymatosiraceae). Protist 168: 527-545.
Gastineau, R., G. Hansen, N.A. Davidovich, O. Davidovich, J.-F. Bardeau, I. Kaczmarska, J. Ehrman, V. Leignel, Y. Hardivillier, B. Jacquette, M. Poulin, M. Morançais, J. Fleurence & J.-L. Mouget. 2016. A new blue-pigmented hasleoid diatom, Haslea provincialis, from the Mediterranean Sea. European Journal of Phycology 51:156-170.
Luddington, I.A., C. Lovejoy & I. Kaczmarska. 2016. Species-rich meta-communities of the diatom order Thalassiosirales in the Arctic and northern Atlantic Ocean. Journal of Plankton Research 38: 781-797.
Kaczmarska, I. & J.M. Ehrman. 2015. Auxosporulation in Paralia guyana MacGillivary (Bacillariophyta) and possible new insights into the habit of the earliest diatoms. PLoS ONE 10: e0141150.
MacGillivary, M.L. & I. Kaczmarska. 2015. Paralia (Bacillariophyta) stowaways in ship ballast: implications for biogeography and diversity of the genus. Journal of Biological Research-Thessaloniki 22: 2.
Kaczmarska, I. & J.M. Ehrman. 2015. High colonization and propagule pressure by ship ballast as a vector for the diatom genus Pseudo-nitzschia. Management of Biological Invasions 6: 31-43.
Edgar, R., D. Drolet, J.M. Ehrman & I. Kaczmarska. 2014 Motile gametes of the araphid diatom Tabularia fasciculata search randomly for mates. PLoS ONE 9: e101767.
Education
M.Sc. Jagellonian University (Krakow) Aquatic Biology
Ph.D. Jagellonian University (Krakow) Botany
Teaching
Undergraduate and Graduate Courses
Biol 4951 - Independent Study in Biology: ecology of marshland and mudflat diatoms.
Biol 4950 - Independent Study in Biology: ecology of marine diatoms and other protists.
Biol 4990 - Honours Thesis: reproductive biology of diatoms (see current projects below).
Biol 5393 - Graduate Level Topics in Biology: evolution and ecology of marine diatoms.
Research
- Evolution of Diatoms: developmental, molecular and fossil evidence (NSERC, with B. Samanta at GITAM)
- Application of artificial intelligence and other computing techniques in biological imaging (with J. M. Ehrman, Digital Microscopy Facility, NBIF)
Part Time Laboratory Technician
Science students or recent graduates are invited to apply for a part time Laboratory Technician opening in the Marine Botany Laboratory. Pending satisfactory performance, this position may be available for up to 3 years. The first three months will be treated as probationary. Work time is flexible, up to 20 hours/week. Applications will be accepted until a suitable candidate is found.
Responsibilities: Digital image and data collection, entry, and manipulation, caring for microbial cultures, microscopy, and other laboratory duties as needed in the research program of Dr. I. Kaczmarska. Instruction in all responsibilities will be given. Occasional assistance with fieldwork may be required.
Qualifications: Good standing in relevant courses or previous experience in plant, marine science and/or microbial biology. Experience with microscopes, use of computers and familiarity with basic descriptive statistics would be an asset.
Remuneration: Depends on qualifications but is comparable to wages in similar positions on campus. Benefits comparable to those of a grant-supported employee at Mount Allison University.
To apply: Please contact Dr. I. Kaczmarska at: iehrman@mta.ca for specifics.
Graduate Research Opportunities
Biological and Computer Sciences
1. Merging theoretical reproductive strategies of diatoms with population cell-size data in fossil or extant settings.
This project is directed toward candidates interested in diatoms and their unusual life cycles. Both empirical evidence and theoretical attributes of specific cycles will be considered. The project aims to test some of the common assumptions leading to inconsistencies in the available published evidence for both.
Biological Science
2. Life histories and reproduction of diatoms.
A circular or ellipsoidal valve outline is relatively common among diatoms. Recent advances in molecular phylogeny indicate that general similarity in structure does not always mean that diatom species are closely related. Although the process of sexual reproduction in some species has been examined using light microscopy, the fine structure and ontogeny of their sexual cells are poorly known. The aim of this study is to address this gap in knowledge and to analytically compare molecular and developmental relationships between relevant taxa.
Paleoenvironmental Science
3. Diversity and paleoecology of the Oligocene microfossils.
Extant species of many members of the diatom class Mediophyceae and nannofossils (e.g., Cymatosirales Thalassiosirales, Parmophytes) have relatively weakly silicified cell wals which result in their poor fossilization. The sedimentary environment during the Oligocene inland oceans facilitated exceptionally good preservation and rich flora of such species. The Oligocene Epoch is significant in our understanding of paleoclimate because the Epoch records the tumultuous transition from the preceding hot to the upcoming icy “global house”. Both diversity and palaeoecological setting of species during this time will be investigated. Results will be placed in the context of their paleoenvironment.
Please contact I. Kaczmarska (iehrman@mta.ca) regarding the projects and Graduate Studies (https://mta.ca/admissions/how-apply/graduate-students-admissions) regarding admission.
