Cladus: Eukaryota Name Microsporidia Balbiani, 1892 Vernacular names The microsporidia constitute a phylum of spore-forming unicellular parasites. They were once thought to be protists but are now known to be fungi. Loosely 1500 of the probably more than one million[citation needed] species are named now. Microsporidia are restricted to animal hosts, and all major groups of animals host microsporidia. Most infect insects, but they are also responsible for common diseases of crustaceans and fish. The distinguished species of microsporidia usually infect one specific host or a related group of hosts. Several species, most of which are opportunistic, also infect humans. Approximately 10 percent of the species are parasites of vertebrates, including in humans. After infection they influence their hosts in various ways and all organs and tissues are invaded. Some species are lethal, and a few are used in biological control of insect pests. Parasitic castration, gigantism, change of host sex are effects of microsporidian parasitism. In the most advanced cases of parasitism the microsporidium rules the host cell completely and controls its metabolism and reproduction, forming a xenoma. [1]. Replication takes place within the host's cells, which are infected by means of unicellular spores. These vary from 1-40 μm, making them some of the smallest eukaryotes. They also have the smallest eukaryotic genomes. Microsporidium was once the vernacular name for a member of the class Microsporea.[2] Anatomy Microsporidia lack mitochondria and possess, instead, mitosomes. They also lack motile structures such as flagella. The spore is protected by a wall, consisting of three layers: an outer electron-dense exospore In most cases there are two closely associated nuclei, forming a diplokaryon, but sometimes there is only one. Infection In the gut of the host the spore germinates. It builds up osmotic pressure until its rigid wall ruptures at its thinnest point at the apex. The posterior vacuole swells, forcing the polar filament to rapidly eject the infectious content into the cytoplasm of the potential host. Simultaneously the material of the filament is rearranged to form a tube which functions as a hypodermic needle and penetrates the gut epithelium. Once inside the host cell, a sporoplasm grows, dividing or forming a multinucleate plasmodium, before producing new spores. The life cycle varies considerably. Some have a simple asexual life cycle,[3] while others have a complex life cycle involving multiple hosts and both asexual and sexual reproduction. Different types of spores may be produced at different stages, probably with different functions including autoinfection (transmission within a single host). Medical implications The microsporidia often cause chronic, debilitating diseases rather than lethal infections. Effects on the host include reduced longevity, fertility, weight, and general vigor. Vertical transmission of microsporidia is frequently reported. In the case of insect hosts, vertical transmission often occurs as transovarial transmission, where the microsporidian parasites pass from the ovaries of the female host into eggs and eventually multiply in the infected larvae. Amblyospora salinaria n. sp. which infects the mosquito Culex salinarius Coquillett, and Amblyospora californica which infects the mosquito Culex tarsalis Coquillett, provide typical examples of transovarial transmission of microsporidia.[4][5][6][7] Microsporidia, specifically the mosquito-infecting Vavraia culicis, are being explored as a possible 'evolution-proof' malaria-control method.[8] Microsporidian infection of Anopheles gambiae (the principal vector of Plasmodium falciparum malaria) reduces malarial infection within the mosquito, and shortens the mosquito lifespan.[9] As the majority of malaria-infected mosquitoes naturally die before the malaria parasite is mature enough to transmit, any increase in mosquito mortality through microsporidian-infection may reduce malaria transmission to humans. Classification For some time microsporidia were considered as very primitive eukaryotes, especially because of the lack of mitochondria, and placed along with the other protozoa diplomonads, parabasalia and archamoebae in the protist-group "Archezoa". More recent research has falsified this theory of early origin (for all of these). Yet microsporidia are proposed to be highly developed and specialized organisms, which just dispensed functions that are needed no longer, because they are supplied by the host.[10] Furthermore, spore-forming organisms in general do have a complex system of reproduction, both sexual and asexual, which look far from primitive. Nowadays microsporidia are placed within the Fungi or as a sister-group of the Fungi with a common ancestor.[11][12][13][14] Forming of clades is largely based on habitat and host. Three classes of Microsporidia are proposed by Vossbrinck and Debrunner-Vossbrinck, based on the habitat: Aquasporidia, Marinosporidia and Terresporidia.[15] One classification could be: 1. Subclass: Dihaplophasea Order: Meiodihaplophasida 2. Subclass Haplophasea Order Glugeida
^ a b Ronny Larsson, Lund University (Department of Cell and Organism Biology) Cytology and taxonomy of the microsporidia 2004.
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