أمل سمير النحاس: عمل الطالبتين
آيه أيمـــــن فــــال
ê Several species of Monocystis belong to the class Sporozoa and are placed in the order
Gregarinida.
Subphylum sporozoa :
The sporozoa are all parasites .
They have no locomotory organelles .
Their life cycle is complex and usually involves asexual and sexual generations .
They lack special locomotory , feeding and water-balancing organelles .
MONOCYSTIS
CLASSIFICATION :
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Kingdom Protozoa
Phylum Protozoa
Subphylum Mycetozoa
Superclass Acanthophractida
Sporozoa – parasitic
Class
protozoans
GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS :
Monocystis is an endoparasite in the seminal vesicle and coelom of earthworms .
Host : Earthworm .
Sperm Morulae ( Sperm Mother Cells ) develop the spermatozoa .
The feeding stage is called trophozoite that develops within the sperm morula .
Infective Stage : Pseudonavicellae or Sporocyst .
It Feeds at the expense of the protoplasm of the developing spermatozoa
1
MORPHOLOGY :
The Trophozoite has an elongated cigar-shaped body covered by a firm pellicle .
Often surrounded by the tails of the dead spermatozoa of the earthworm giving the
Monocystis a ciliated appearance.
Its cytoplasm is differentiated into :
outer clear ectoplasm .
Inner granular endoplasm .
Contractile myonemes extend longitudinally in the ectoplasm .
Locomotion :
The Trophozoite has no special locomotory organelles .
Trophozoite is characterised by contraction and relaxation of the myonemes during
wriggling it is known as gregarine motion .
Myonemes :
N help in metabolic locomotion .
FEEDING :
By absorption of the cytoplasm of the developing spermatozoa around the
Trophozoite .
The Trophozoite secretes digestive enzymes which act upon that cytoplasm before
absorption .
It has no contractile vacuoles or food vacuoles .
Reserve food material is stored as paramylum granules .
Respiration :
ê By simple diffusion through the pellicle .
ê The surrounding fluid inside the seminal vesicles receives oxygen from the blood of the
earthworm .
Excretion :
ê By simple diffusion through the pellicle .
ê Carbon dioxide and nitrogenous wastes are also carried away by the blood of the
earthworm .
Reproduction & life cycle :
The Trophozoite is haploid.
Trophozoite reproduce by spores .
2
Life cycle :
(1) Trophozoite starts reproduction and is then termed a gametocyte or gamont .
(2) Two gametocytes come together , round up and secrete a common double-walled
cyst around them known as gametocyst .
(3) Within the cyst, each gametocyte undergoes " multiple fission (by mitosis) "
producing a large number of gametes " usually 64 " . . . the two associated
gametocytes usually produce the same number of gametes which :
In some species in other species
- Identical in form - different in form
- Described as isogametes - known as anisogametes
(4) The gametes then unite in pairs forming diploid zygotes or sporoblasts " a process
of sexual fusion known as syngamy " .
(5) Each zygote surrounds itself with a resistant covering cyst known as the sporocyst
or pseudonavicella . ** because of its boat-shaped appearance similar to that of
the diatom .
(6) Within each sporocyst, the sporoblast undergoes 3 successive divisions ( the first
of which is by meiosis ) producing 8 fusiform haploid bodies known as the
sporozoites " this process of a sexual multiplication is called sporogony .
