PROTOZOA

Introduction
Protozoa is a group of more than 64,000
species of one called eukaryotic organisms.
They take their name from Greek words
‘’Proto’’ & ‘’zoon’’ which means ‘’first
animals’’. This refers to the position many
biologists believe that protozoa occupy in
the evolution of living things
They are most found as free living
some also form colones which are simple
aggregates of independent cells
They are among the largest organisms
encountered in microbiology. They range in
size from 2µm to 2cm
Habitat:
Aquatic
They may be located in damp soil, mud, ponds,
rivers and oceans
Some species are attached to aquatic plants or
rochs
While other swim about
Other one paracites
About 32,000 species are fossils
22,000 are free living and about 10,000 are
parasitic.
Structural features:
Protozoal cell is surrounded by the membrane
however in some species, outside the
membrane a lipid structure called pellicle is
also present
The cytoplasm contain eukaryotic features,
each cell having nucleus & nucleur
membrane. Many protozoan cytoplasm can be
distinguished into two parts
Ectoplasm: Outer layer
Endoplasm: Inner layer and most cellular
structures
Protozoal cells continuously take water by
osmosis and eliminate it via organelles called
contractile vacuoles . These expand to draw
water and contract to release water outside
through a temporary opening is called
membrane-------
Protozoan obtained their food by engulfing food
particles by phagocytosis to form food vacuoles
which are then digested by lysosomes.
Most of protogoan possess locomotary organs
such as;
 Pseudopodia
 Cilia

 Flagella

All protogoan are aerobic & obtain their oxygen

by diffusion through the cell membrane
They exit in two forms:
Feeding form called -----Trophogoite
Dormant, highly resistant form---- the cyst
Protogoan reproduce by both sexual and
asexual methods
Sexual include:
Conjugation (in ciliates)
Gamete formulation (completed in
multiple hosts)
Asexual include:
 Binary fission
 Multiple fission
 Budding
 FOUR GROUPS OF
PROTOZOA
The protogoa (Phyllum Protozoa)
may be classified into four major
classes(actually subphyla) based on their
form & locomotion
These groups are:
1. Sarcodina (ameboid protozoa)

2. Mastigophora ( flagellates)

3. Ciliophora (cilliates)

4. Sporozoa
1- SARCODINA
It is a group of ameboid protozoans
Pseudopodial extrusion of protoplasm serve a
locomotary organ also by flowing around the
food particles provide the mean of ingestion.
These have no or very thin, different pellicle,
therefore their shape is not definite.
Cytoplasm is often differentiated into
ectoplasm & endoplasm. Endoplasm contain
a single nucleus, food vacuoles, granules &
in fresh water form contractile vacuoles
Reproduction:
Binary fission
Significant groups:
Free living amoebas:
Example:
Difflugia-----have shell of silica
Arcella-------have chitinous shell
Radiolaria:
They have spherical shell, highly sculptured glassy
skeleton
Foraminifera:
Possess multi-chambered calcareous shell,
somewhat similar to suailis shell. Pseudopodia
extend through pores in the shell for locomotion
to secure food.
Parasitic foods:
Cause various diseases e.g; Entamoeba
histolytica causes amebiasis, Eucephalitis,
Humidifier fever
Acanthamoeba cestellannia cause corneal
infection (in persons who have contact lenses)
 2- Mastigophora
Distinct features:
They have shape of vase
Have one more whip like undulating flagella. These
can push or pull the organism
Each flagellum has a 9+2 arrangement of
microtubules.
Cell Structure:
Have thick pellicle so have constant shape
Cytoplasm contain vacuoles & granules of various
kinds
Some gps contain chloroplasts
Reproduction:
Longitudinal binary fission
Significant group:
1) Phytoflagellates: Are motile, single celled
algae like organism. They are
photosynthetic but are saprophytic during
period of poor illumination e.g; Euglena,
Dinoflagella
2) Zooflagellates: Many of these cause
diseases in humans.
Example:
Trichomonas vaginalis------ Vaginitis
Giardia lamblia------------ Giardiasis
Trypanasoma bruce-------- African sleeping
sickness
Trypanasoma gambiense----- African /////
Leishmania donovani---------- Leishmaniasis
 3- Ciliphora
Distinct features:
They are among the most complex cells om earth
They are covered with hair like cilia in longitudinal or spiral rows
The movement of cilia is coordinated by a network of fibers
running beneath the surface of cell.
Paramaceium:
It is a slipper shaped ciliate
It has primitive gullet and mouth into which food
Particles are swept
It contains one meganucleus and one two
micronucleus.
Reproduction:
Asexual------ Binary fission through mega nucleus
Sexual ------- Conjugation in which two cells make
contact and a cytoplastic bridge form between
them. A micronucleus from each cell undergoes
two division to form four micronuclei of which one
remains alive and undergoes division. Now a
swapping of micronuclei takes place followed by
union to reform the normal micronucleus
 Kappa Factor:
Paramaceum possess nucleic acid particles
which are responsible for the synthesis of toxins
that destroy ciliates lacking this factor
Trichocystis:
Also present in paramaceum. These are
organelles that discharge filaments to trap prey
Contractile vacuoles:
Used to bail out excess water from the
cytoplasm of fresh water form
Pathogenic member:
Balantidium coli cause balantidiasis
(among largest+protozoan to infent man
4- Sporozoa:
Distinct features:
All members of this group are paracites and
produce spores at some stage of their life cycle
They have complex life cycles that include
alternating sexual & asexual reproductive
phases
Their spores are not true as they lack
resistence of other spore
They lacl locomotary organs in adult forms
Examples;
1) Plasmodium---- P.vivax, P.ovale,
P.falsiparum, P.malaria
2) Toxoplasma gondii cause toxoplasmosis
3) Isosphora belli cause coccidiosis
4) Cryptosporidium parum cause
cryptosporidiosis
 Malaria Cycle
The malaria parasite has a complex, multistage
life cycle occurring within two living beings, the
vector mosquitoes and the vertebrate hosts.
The parasite passes through several stages of
development such as the sporozoites
(Gr. Sporos = seeds; the infectious form
injected by the mosquito), merozoites
(Gr. Meros = piece; the stage invading the
erythrocytes), trophozoites (Gr. Trophes =
nourishment; the form multiplying in
erythrocytes), and gametocytes (sexual stages)
+
and all these stages have their own unique
shapes and structures and protein
complements. The surface proteins and
metabolic pathways keep changing
during these different stages.
That help the parasite to evade the
immune clearance, while also creating
problems for the development of drugs
and vaccines.
Malaria cycle