This document provides information about protozoa. It defines protozoa as unicellular eukaryotic microorganisms and discusses their characteristics, morphology, types, reproduction methods, and diseases caused. The key types discussed are flagellates, ciliates, sarcodina, and sporozoates. Several pathogenic protozoa are mentioned, including those that cause malaria, giardiasis, amoebic dysentery, and toxoplasmosis. Common antiprotozoal drugs like chloroquine, mefloquine, and metronidazole are also outlined.

1. Life Saving College Of Nursing
M. Farooq Marwat
RN, Dip. Card, BSN

2. Objectives:
At theend of this presentation, thestudentwill beable to :
⚫Understand the Protozoa
⚫Know about the characteristics of Protozoa
⚫Know about the Morphology of Protozoa
⚫Know about the Types of Protozoa
⚫Know about the Methods of reproduction in
Protozoa
⚫Know about the disease cause by Protozoa
⚫Know about the drugs used against Protozoa

3. Protozoa

4. Protozoa:
⚫Theword protozoa iscome from Greek protozoon word
meaning “First Animal”.
⚫Protozoa are unicellular (may be Multicellular) Eukaryotic
microorganism.
⚫Protozoa constitute a large group of about 65,000 species.
Most of which are harmless free living and inhabits water
and soil
⚫A few species are pathogenic in nature parasitize human
and other animals causing hundreds of million of
infections in ayeararound theworld

5. Characteristics
⚫Mostly Unicellularorganism with fully functional cell
⚫Live freely, may be parasitic orsymbiotic
⚫Protozoaare chemo-hetrotrops
⚫Theyare motile have locomotiveorganelles. E.g.
Flagellaand Cilia for movement

6. Morphology
⚫Protozoa are Eukaryotic resemble to animal cell,
contain majorcell organelles (including Nucleus,
Mitochondria)
⚫Theirorganellesare highly specialized for feeding,
reproduction and movement
⚫Thecytoplasmof protozoaaredivided intoan outer
layer called Ectoplasm and an inner layer called
Endoplasm

7. Protozoa

8. Morphology
⚫Ectoplasm helps in movement, feeding and Protection
⚫Endoplasm houses Nucleus, mitochondria and food
⚫Some protozoa havespecial appendages Flagella and
cilia that helps in their movements
⚫Freshwaterprotozoa have contractilevacuoles to
pumpoutexcess water
⚫Theirshape may remain constant (specially in Ciliates)
orchange constantly (as seen in Amoeba)

9. Ectoplasm and Endoplasm

10. Morphology
⚫The size of Protozoa is range between 3 to 300
micrometer.
⚫Fewciliate and Amoebaare largerenough to be seen
with naked eyes (theyareabout 4 to 5 mm).
⚫Except Sporozoates, all typesof protozoaare motile
either through Flagella, ciliaor Pseudopodia
⚫Have Eyespot thatcan detectchange in light
⚫ Respond to light & learn by trial & error

11. Eyespots
Eyespot

12. Nutrition
⚫Mostlyprotozoa feed on dead plantsand animal debris
whilesome (trophozoites) feed on bacteriaand Algae.
⚫Parasitic Protozoa feeds on the fluids and tissuesof
their host(e.g. Plasmaand blood cells)
⚫Some Protozoa live in symbioticrelationshipwith
otherplantsand animals

13. Classification of Protozoa
⚫Protozoaare classified on the basis of their motility
and method of reproduction
⚫Theyareclassified into Four main types
⚫Flagellates
⚫Ciliates
⚫Sarcodina
⚫Sporozoates

14. Flagellates
⚫Flagellates move by helpof Flagella (a tail-like
structure ). The movement is whip like
⚫Exampleof Flagellatesare
⚫Trypnosoma, Leishmenia (blood pathogen)
⚫Giardia (intestinal parasite)
⚫Trichomonas (reproductivetract pathogen)

15. Ciliates
⚫Ciliates protozoa have movement through cilia( fine
hair like structureattached with their body).
⚫Some protozoa have special kind of cilia for feeding
and attachment.
⚫Most are harmless. Only one species Balantidium Coli
is pathogenic for human causes a rare and server form
of Dysentery.

16. Ciliates

17. Sarcodina
⚫Major loco-motororganelles in Sarcodina is
pseudopodia (Pseudo means false, podia means Foot)
⚫Commonexampleof Sarcodina is Amoeba
⚫Mostspecies are harmless
⚫Enaemoba is a parasitic for human causes intestinal
disease

18. Sporozoates
⚫Sporozoatesare theonly non-motile form of protozoa.
⚫Sporozoates havewell developed sexual and asexual
stages
⚫Entiregroup is parasitic in natureand are harmful
⚫Somecommonexamples of Sporozoatesand their
infectionsare
⚫Plasmodium (causativeagentof Malaria, causes 100 to
300 million infection world wide)
⚫Toxoplasma Gondii (causes Toxoplasmosis)

19. Reproduction in Protozoa
⚫Protozoacan reproduce theiroff spring by both Sexual
and Asexual methods
⚫Asexual methodsof reproduction are:
⚫Budding
⚫Binary Fission
⚫Schizogonyor Multiple Fission
⚫Sexual Methods
⚫Conjugation
⚫Gametogony

20. Schizogony
⚫It is the method of multiple fission in which
first the nucleus undergoes multiple
division, form many nuclei that a small
portion of cytoplasm concentrate around
each nucleus and than protozoan cell is
divide into many daughtercells

21. Schizogony

22. Sexual Reproduction
⚫Conjugation:
⚫Two protozoa meet togetherand exchange
theirgenetic material
⚫Gametogony:
⚫Unionof twosexuallydifferentiated cells

24. Disease Caused Protozoa
Disease Causative Agent
Malaria Plasmodium
(P. Falciparum, P. Oval,P. Vivax,
P.malariae)
Giardiasis (diarrhea) Giardia intestinalis
Amoebic Dysentery Entamoeba histolytica
Toxoplasmosis
(immune deficiency )
Toxoplasma Gondii
Cryptosporidiosis Cryptosporidia
Sleeping sickness Trypanosoma
Leishmmaniasis (kala-azar) Leishmania

25. Antiprotozoal Drugs
⚫Examplesof antiprotozoal drugs include: Chloroquine
Mef loquineand Pyrimethamine.
Theseare used in malaria treatment.
⚫Metronidazolewasdeveloped as an antiprotozoal
drug. It induces strand breaks in the DNA of sensitive
organisms and alsodisrupts membrane integrity.

26. ⚫Otherantiprotozoal agents are Sulphonamidesand
trimethoprim, inhibit folicacid synthesis