INVERTEBRATE ZOOLOGY - H. I. Shcherbak - 2008

PROTISTS - PROTISTA

PROTOZOANS (PROTOZOA)

MICROSPORIDIANS

PHYLUM MICROSPORIDIA

Extremely small (a few micrometers in size) intracellular parasites infecting a wide range of animals—from single-celled organisms to mammals—though Arthropods are their most frequent hosts. Over a thousand species are known to science.

Microsporidians differ from apicomplexans in The Structure of their vegetative stages, life cycle, and most notably in spore Morphology, featuring a highly specialized mechanism for invading the host Organism.

The phylum Microsporidia comprises two classes: Rudimicrosporea, which includes a small number of poorly studied species, and the much larger Class Microsporidia.

Last update: 13/08/2026

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