Hetetotrophic Protists II: Zooflagellates & Sporozoans Kingdom Protista Hetetotrophic Protists II: Zooflagellates & Sporozoans

D) Zooflagellates: Phylum Sarcomastigophora 1) Movement: Flagellum

The Termite, the zooflagellate & the bacteria. Although termites are famous for their ability to eat wood, causing damage to wooden structures and recycling cellulose in the soil, they are unable to digest the wood that they eat. To break down the cellulose, termites enlist the help of a variety of microorganisms.

Protozoans such a Trichonympha sphaerica to digest cellulose is an example of endosymbiosis, a symbiotic relationship with an organism that lives inside the body of the host organism (in this case, within the hindgut of the termite).

a) Trypanosoma gambiense can cause African Sleeping Sickness (Trypanosomiasis) It is transmitted by the tsetse fly. It is characterized by increasing fever, lethargy, mental deterioration, and coma.

Sleeping sickness is blamed for some 25,000 deaths in Africa each year Sleeping sickness is blamed for some 25,000 deaths in Africa each year. the disease (along with a similar disease called nagana) annually kills 3 million cattle.

b) Another Disease caused by Trypanosoma is Chagas’ Disease (Typanosoma cruzi) Transmitted by the “kissing bug” The patient suffers from fever & severe heart damage. It can also cause eyelid & facial swelling called “chagoma.” Usually in South America & Mexico

c) A zooflagellate called Giardia lamblia causes giardiasis – an illness that causes severe diarrhea & intestinal cramps. eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee It is transmitted when animals with the organism their feces, contaminate water supplies.The disease is usually not fatal. It usually occurs in Africa, but thousands of cases occur in the U.S.

d) A disease called leishmaniasis, a blood disease, afflicts millions in Africa, Asia and Latin America. ( 12 million infected worldwide) It is transmitted by the sand flea. (The zooflagellate Leishmania donovani.) It can cause disfiguring skin sores, fever, chills, weight loss, anemia, and can be fatal.

E) Phylum Apicomplexa: No Form of Locomotion (sporozoans) a) Toxoplasma gondii – causes toxoplasmosis It is dangerous to newborns or a developing fetus. Some adults become seriously ill with flu like symptoms. It is transmitted by birds, rodents and domestic cats.

b) Plasmodium – causes malaria b) Plasmodium – causes malaria . It is characterized by severe chills, fever, sweating, fatigue, and great thirst. Victims die of kidney failure, anemia, or brain damage. It is carried by the Anopheles mosquito. Malaria is estimated to kill more than 600,000 people every year, mostly in Africa. Four species of Plasmodium can infect humans. All have life cycles that involve the Anopheles mosquito which transmits the protozoan to humans while feeding.