You are given the task of designing an aerobic, mixotrophic protist that can perform photosynthesis in fairly deep water (for example, 250 meters deep) and can also crawl about and engulf small particles. With which two of the following structures would you provide your protist?
A) hydrogenosomes and apicoplasts
B) apicoplasts and pseudopods
C) pseudopods and chloroplasts from red algae
D) chloroplasts from both red and green algae

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The combination of pseudopods and chloroplasts from red algae would allow the protist to both crawl and engulf small particles, as well as perform photosynthesis in deeper waters, as red algae chloroplasts are adapted to low light conditions. Hydrogenosomes and apicoplasts are not relevant to this specific task, and while apicoplasts and pseudopods would allow the protist to crawl and potentially perform some mixotrophic feeding, it would not be able to perform photosynthesis in deeper waters. Chloroplasts from both red and green algae could potentially provide the necessary photosynthetic capabilities, but pseudopods are necessary for the protist to be able to engulf small particles, making C the better choice.

You Are Given the Task of Designing an Aerobic, Mixotrophic