V.

PROTOZOA

Unicellular, chemoheterotrophic, eukaryotic organisms of

kingdom Protista (3-2000 m).

Protozoan means first animal.

20,000 species, only a few are pathogens.

Most are free-living organisms that inhabit water and

soil. Some live in association with other organisms as
parasites or symbionts.

Reproduce asexually by fission, budding, or schizogony.

Some exhibit sexual reproduction (e.g.: Paramecium).

Trophozoite: Vegetative stage which feeds upon bacteria

and particulate nutrients.

Cyst: Some protozoa produce a protective capsule under

adverse conditions (toxins, scarce water, food, or oxygen).

V. PROTOZOA (Continued)

Nutrition
Most are heterotrophic aerobes. Intestinal protozoa can
grow anaerobically.
Some ingest whole algae, yeast, bacteria, or smaller
protozoans. Others live on dead and decaying matter.
Parasitic protozoa break down and absorb nutrients from
their hosts.
Some transport food across the membrane.
Others have a protective covering (pellicle) and required
specialized structures to take in food.

Ciliates take in food through a cytostome.

Digestion takes place in vacuoles.

Waste may be eliminated through plasma membrane or
an anal pore.

Medically Important Protozoa

1. Amoeboflagellates (Phylum Sarcomastigophora)

Move using pseudopods (false feet) or flagella.
A. Amoebas (Subphylum Sarcodina)
Move by extending blunt, lobelike projections
(pseudopods).
Amoebas engulf food with pseudopods and phagocytize it.
Several species cause amoebic dysenteries of varying
degrees of severity.

Entamoeba hystolytica: Feeds on red blood cells. Produces

dysentery and extraintestinal cysts.
Dientamoeba fragilis: Found in 4% of humans. Usually
commensal. Can cause chronic, mild diarrhea.

Other diseases include:

Meningoencephalitis: Caused by Naegleria fowleri. Penetrate

nasal mucosa of swimmers in warm waters. Mortality rate
almost 100%.
Keratitis: Caused by Acanthamoeba. Can cause blindness.
Associated with use of contact lenses.

B. Flagellates (Subphylum Mastigophora)

Move by one or more whiplike flagella. Some parasitic
flagellates have up to eight flagella.
Most are spindle shaped with flagella projecting from
anterior end.
Outer membrane is a tough pellicle. Food is ingested
through an oral groove or cytosotome.
Important pathogens:

Trichomonas vaginalis: Causes genital and urinary infections.

Has undulating membrane. Lacks a cyst stage. Transmitted
sexually or by fomites.
Giardia lamblia: Causes a persistent intestinal infection
(giardiasis) with diarrhea, nausea, flatulence, and cramps. In
U.S. most common cause of waterborne diarrhea. About 7% of
U.S. population are healthy carriers.
Trypanosoma brucei gambiense: Hemoflagellate (blood parasite).
Causes African sleeping sickness.
Trypanosoma cruzi: Hemoflagellate that causes Chagas disease, a
cardiovascular disease common in Texas and Latin America.

Medically Important Protozoa (Continued)

2. Apicomplexans (Phylum Apicomplexa)

Not motile in their mature form.

Obligate intracellular parasites.

Have specialized organelles at tip (apex) of cells that

penetrate host tissues.

Complex life cycles. May have more than one host.

Definitive host: Harbors sexually reproducing form.
Intermediate host: In which asexual reproduction
occurs.

Medically Important Protozoa (Continued)

2. Apicomplexans (Phylum Apicomplexa)

Important pathogens:

Plasmodium vivax and falciparum: Cause malaria in humans

(intermediate host).
Initially treated with quinine, drug resistance is a major problem
today.
Major cause of worldwide mortality: Kill 3 million people/year
and infect 500 million.
Transmitted by Anopheles mosquito (definitive host).
DDT was used extensively in 1960s in an attempt to eradicate the
mosquito vector.
Successful vaccine not available yet.

Life Cycle of Plasmodium spp. the

Infectious Agent of Malaria

Medically Important Protozoa (Continued)

2. Apicomplexans (Phylum Apicomplexa)

Important pathogens:

Toxoplasma gondii: Causes toxoplasmosis in humans. Causes

blindness and lymphatic infections in adults. Dangerous to
pregnant women, causes severe neurological defects in unborn
children. Cats are part of life cycle, oocysts excreted in feces.
Contact with infected feces or meat are means of transmission.

Cryptosporidium: Causes respiratory and gallbladder infections

in immunosuppressed individuals. Found in intestines of
mammals and water. Major cause of death in AIDS patients.

Cyclospora cayetensis: New parasite (1996) caused diarrhea

associated with raspberries.

Medically Important Protozoa (Continued)

3. Ciliates (Phylum Ciliophora)

Move and obtain food using cilia.

Only known human pathogen is Balantidium coli, which

causes a severe intestinal infection in pigs and humans.

4. Microsporans (Phylum Mycrospora)

Obligate intracellular parasites, lack mitochondria and

microtubules.

Discovered in 1984 to cause chronic diarrhea and

conjunctivitis, mainly in AIDS patients.