Thalassiosira pseudonana

Thalassiosira pseudonana is a species of marine centric diatom. It was chosen as the first eukaryotic marine phytoplankton for whole genome sequencing because T. pseudonana is a model for diatom physiology studies, belongs to a genus widely distributed throughout the world's oceans, and has a relatively small genome at 34 mega base pairs.

The clone of T. pseudonana that was sequenced is CCMP 1335 and is available from the Center for Culture of Marine Phytoplankton. This clone was originally collected in 1958 from Moriches Bay (Long Island, New York) and has been maintained continuously in culture.