Chapter 7 - The Amebas.ppt

Chapter 7 - The Amebas Taxonomy P. Sarcodina S.P. Amoebozoa (Rhizopoda) C. Lobosea O. Amoebida O. Schizopyrenida Life Cycle: Overview * * P. Sarcodina Characterized by cytoplasmic extensions of the body called pseudopodia; flagella, when present, are restricted to specific developmental stages Internal organs are not fixed in position within the cell, but rather they move freely within the cytoplasm Most members of phylum are free living; a few are parasitic and commensalistic O. Amoebida Usually uninucleate; no flagellate stage Family Endamoebidae Parasites or commensals of the digestive systems of arthropods and vertebrates Genera and species are primarily distinguished on the basis of their nuclear structure Type example: Entamoeba Genus Entamoeba Morphology Ectoplasm is usually distinguishable from the endoplasm Nucleus is characterized by a a peripheral layer of chromatin forming a beaded ring Cytoplasm of trophozoites contains numerous helical bodies with ribonuceoproteins - chromatoidal bodies Chromatoidal bodies develop in the motile stages of the amebas and mature in the cyst, but disappear as the cyst ages Golgi bodies and mitochondria are completely absent in these organisms Entamoeba histolytica Best known species of ameba that parasitizes humans Causative agent of amoebiasis/amoebic dysentery Global in its distribution; the incidence of infection exceeds 400 million cases! First discovered in Russia in 1873 by Losch Life Cycle (detail) The uninucleate trophozoite inhabits the colon, rectum and, at times, the lower end of the small intestine of humans and other primates It is typically monopodial, producing one large fingerlike pseudopodium Trophozoites proliferate mitotically (binary fission) in the host gut Under certain adverse environmental and/or physiological circumstances the trophozoites assume precystic characteristics by becoming more spherical and as food vacuoles are extruded, sh