PROTISTS
[Protozoa] [Fungus-Like
Absorbers]
I. Eukaryotes
A. single and multicelled forms, go through mitosis and meiosis
B. nucleus, nuclear membrane and more than 1 chromosome
C. organized cellular components as organelles
1. chlorophyll is in chloroplasts
2. mitochondria is used for energy production; ATP
II. Phytoplankton are Photosynthesizers: algae
A. Phylum Chlorophyta: green algae
1. live in wet habitats, generally microscopic
2. same chlorophyll, cellulose in cell walls and starch storage
3. Chlamydomonas: alternates between haploid and diploid cells
4. Volvox: colonial cells specialized for movement and reproduction
5. filamentous Spirogyra: forms conjugation tubes for cell content
exchange
B. Phylum Rhodophyta: red algae
1. chlorophyll & phycobilins trap sunlight in deep sea water
2. extract agar: as a lab medium
3. extract carrageenan: used in paints, cosmetics & ice cream
C. Phylum Pheophyta: brown algae
1. large marine kelp (seaweed) of intertidal zone
2. a leaf-like blade grows from a stem-like stipe attached to a root-like
holdfast
3. it may have gas-filled bladders or floats
4. algin: thickening in ice cream, cough syrup, toothpaste
D. Phylum Chrysophyta: golden algae
1. diatoms have double shells of silica
2. used as an abrasive or paint additive
E. Euglenophyta: Euglena
1. chlorophyll for photosynthesis and a light sensitive eyespot
2. it moves by a flagella like protozoa
F. Phylum Pyrrhophyta: dinoflagellates form red tides that poison fish
or shellfish
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III. Zooplankton or Protozoa: animal like, motile, no cell wall, all single
celled, heterotrophic, may form resistant cysts
A. Phylum Ciliophora: Paramecium
1. coordinated beating of cilia gives motility
2. has a tough, flexible, outer pellicle
3. food enters gullet and into vacuoles
4. contractile vacuoles regulate water
5. asexual reproduction by fission or sexual reproduction by conjugation
B. Phylum Sarcodina: Amoeba
1. pseudopods: cytoplasmic extensions give motility
2. amoebic dysentery from feces, infected food, water or flies
C. Phylum Mastigophora: flagellates, have 1 or more flagella
1. free-living: symbiotic Trichonympha lives in the gut of termites,
helps it digest cellulose
2. parasitic: Trypanosoma causes African sleeping sickness through
a Tsetse fly
3. Giardia: hiker's diarrhea, through water infected by wildlife
4. Trichomonas: STD, damages urinary and reproductive tracts
D. Phylum Sporozoa: parasitic, nonmotile, forms spores
1. Plasmodium causes malaria, spread by the bite of the Anopheles
mosquito
2. Toxoplasmosis: causes birth defects from infected cat feces
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IV. Fungus-Like Absorbers
A. Phylum Acrasiomycota: cellular slime molds
B. Phylum Myxomycota: plasmodial slime molds
1. has no dividing cell walls, multinucleate
2. shows cytoplasmic streaming
3. sometimes come together and form a slug
4. engulf and digest bacteria and yeasts
C. Oomycota: water molds, white rusts and downy mildew
1. caused the Irish potato famine in the 1840's
2. causes ick, a disease in fish
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