Protists
Life Science – January 2013- Hooper
What is a Protist?
Protists are eukaryotes (organisms whose cells have a nucleus)
that cannot be classified as plants, animals, or fungi.
Additionally, all protists live in moist surroundings.
A Kingdom of Diversity
“Diversity” is the word that best describes Kingdom Protista.
This kingdom contains organisms that are unicellular and organisms
that are multicellular. It is the “Odds and Ends” Kingdom.
Protists can be
heterotrophs, autotrophs,
or both.
Some protists are motile
and some are not.
Trypanosoma brucei
Animal-Like Protists
Protozoan: one-celled animal-like protists. They are heterotrophs.
Most protozoa are able to move .
Amoeba proteus
Protozoa include:
1. Sarcodines
2. Ciliates
3. Flagellates
4. Parasitic
protozoa
http://www.sciencephoto.com/image/100822/530wm/C0036596-Proteus_amoeba,_light_micrograph-SPL.jpg
Plantlike Protists
http://www.sciencephoto.com/media/15785/enlarge
Plantlike Protists – autotrophs with a cell
wall.
1. Diatoms
2. Dinoflagellates
3. Euglenoids
4. Red, Green, and Brown Algae
http://www.sciencephoto.com/media/364891/enlarge
Funguslike Protists
The funguslike protists are heterotrophs that have cell walls and use
spores to reproduce. The funguslike protists include the slime molds,
water molds, and downy mildews.
Protozoa - Sarcodines
Entamoeba histolytica
A disease causing
amoeba in humans. This
amoeba can bore into the
intestinal wall and enter
the bloodstream and may
cause liver abscesses.
http://www.infovisual.info/02/003_en.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Trophozoites_of_Entamoeba_histolytica_with_ingested_erythrocytes.JPG
Protozoa - Ciliates
Didinium sp.
http://www.sciencephoto.com/media/419708/enlarge
Paramecium bursaria
A freshwater protist that moves
with cilia. This paramecium has
numerous autotrophic algae living
in its cytoplasm. The algae provide
sugars and oxygen while being
protected within the much larger
ciliate.
http://www.emc.maricopa.edu/faculty/farabee/biobk/biobookdiversity_3.html
Protozoa - Ciliates
Blepharisma undulans
Spirostomum ambiguum
http://virtuelle.gefil.de/s-hess/protoz.html
Spirostomum sp. are among the
largest protists at up to 4 mm.
They are free-living, aquatic
ciliates that are cylindrical and
worm-like.
Blepharisma sp. Are heterotrophic
ciliates that feed on bacteria.
They are unusual in that many
species have a pink to reddish
color. Blepharismas can reproduce
by binary fission or conjugation.
Ciliates
Binary Fission – asexual
reproduction. The ciliate
copies its DNA and divides in
half. Two identical daughter
cells are produced.
Conjugation – sexual
reproduction; exchange of
micronuclei (gentic
innformation).
http://www.nvsd44.bc.ca/Staff/UZ/VondetteN10030/Biology%2011/Ch%2018/Ch
%2018%20Lab.aspx
Protozoa - Flagellates
http://www.sciencephoto.com/media/364931/enlarge
http://www.sciencephoto.com/media/364918/enlarge
Flagellates
Giardia lamblia is an intestinal
parasite in humans.
Trichonympha campanula is a
flagellate that lives in the
intestines of termites.
Mutualism: symbiosis where both
partners benefit.
Anatomy of a Flagellate
Giardia lamblia is a
flagellate protist that
lives in freshwater
streams, rivers, and
lakes.
Drinking water
containing these
protists causes a
serious intestinal
condition called hiker’s
disease.
Parasitic Protozoa
Parasitic protozoa: feed on the cells and body fluids of their hosts.
These protozoa often have very complex life cycles involving multiple hosts.
Plasmodium falciparum
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Plasmodium.jpg
Malaria is a mosquito-borne
disease caused by a parasite.
People with malaria often
experience fever, chills, and
flu-like illness. Left untreated,
they may develop severe
complications and die. In 2008,
an estimated 190 - 311 million
cases of malaria occurred
worldwide and 708,000 1,003,000 people died, most of
them young children in subSaharan Africa. http://www.cdc.gov/malaria/
http://www.travelhealth.co.uk/diseases/malaria_lifcycle.htm
Parasitic
Protozoa
Parasitic protozoa feed on the
cells and body fluids of their
hosts.
These protozoa often have
very complex life cycles
involving multiple hosts.
http://www.sciencephoto.com/media/370255/view
Parasitic Protozoa
Parasitic protozoa :feed on the cells and body fluids of their hosts.
These protozoa often have very complex life cycles involving multiple hosts.
Toxoplasma gondii
The cause of toxoplasmosis –
which can be flu-like, cause
disease of the eyes, or severe
infection of unborn children in
the womb.
http://www.cdc.gov/parasites/toxoplasmosis/
Parasitic Protozoa
Parasitic protozoa feed on the cells and body fluids of their hosts.
These protozoans often have very complex life cycles involving multiple hosts.
Toxoplasma gondii
Because the parasite is
present in cat feces,
pregnant women should
not change cat litter
boxes. Unborn children
can develop severe
disease of the eyes and
nervous system from T.
gondii.
http://mmbr.asm.org/content/64/3/607.full
http://www.cdc.gov/parasites/toxoplasmosis/gen_info/pregnant.html
Parasitic Protozoa
Leishmaniasis is a disease caused
by the parasitic protozoa
Leishmania species.
This parasite has a single
flagellum and attacks the white
blood cells, spleen, and liver. It
can also cause disfiguring lesions
on the skin and mucous
membranes.
Leishmaniasis is transmitted to
humans by the bite of the sand
fly. Infections in the United
States are very rare.
Works Cited
Didinium species. http://www.sciencephoto.com/media/121843/enlarge.
Dinoflagellates. http://www.sciencephoto.com/image/124040/530wm/C0060661.
-Freshwater_Dinoflagellates-SPL.jpg
Euglena. http://www.sciencephoto.com/media/364939/view.
Giardia diagram. http://www.cc.shsmu.edu.cn.
Leishmania tropica. https://www.msu.edu/course/zol/316/lsppscope.htm.
Trypanosoma brucei. http://www.sciencephoto.com/media/262488/view.
Sand-fly. http://www.valleyveterinarygroup.com/holidays/pet-travel-scheme/index.html.
Slime mold. http://www.blog.sciencegeekgirl.com.
Spirostomum species.
http://starcentral.mbl.edu/microscope/portal.php?pagetitle=assetfactsheet&imageid=1249.
Tsetse fly. http://www.sciencephoto.com/media/395815/view.
Volvox. http://www.jgi.doe.gov/sequencing/why/cv_transcriptomes.html.