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The contractile vacuole has several structures attached to it in most cells, such as membrane folds, tubules, water tracts and small vesicles. These structures have been termed the spongiome; the contractile vacuole together with the spongiome is sometimes called the "contractile vacuole complex" (CVC). The spongiome serves several functions in ...
The contractile mechanism varies depending on the protist: in ciliates, the spongiome is composed of irregular tubules and actin filaments wind around the pore and over the vacuole surface, together with microtubules; in most flagellates and amoebae, the spongiome is composed of both vesicles and tubules; in dinoflagellates, a flagellar rootlet ...
Paramecium caudatum [1] is a species of unicellular protist in the phylum Ciliophora. [2] They can reach 0.33 mm in length and are covered with minute hair-like organelles called cilia. [3] The cilia are used in locomotion and feeding. [2] The species is very common, and widespread in marine, brackish and freshwater environments. [4] [5]
A vacuole (/ ˈ v æ k juː oʊ l /) is a membrane-bound organelle which is present in plant and fungal cells and some protist, animal, and bacterial cells. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] Vacuoles are essentially enclosed compartments which are filled with water containing inorganic and organic molecules including enzymes in solution , though in certain cases ...
Anything left in the food vacuole by the time it reaches the cytoproct is discharged by exocytosis. Most ciliates also have one or more prominent contractile vacuoles , which collect water and expel it from the cell to maintain osmotic pressure , or in some function to maintain ionic balance.
Protists are distributed across all major groups of eukaryotes, including those that contain multicellular algae, green plants, animals, and fungi. If photosynthetic and fungal protists are distinguished from protozoa, they appear as shown in the phylogenetic tree of eukaryotic groups.
Contractile vacuoles help to maintain osmoregulation, and phagocytic vacuoles allow select protists to ingest food. In some protists, flagella or cilia may be present to help with motility and nutrient intake. The flagella or cilia create water currents that assist in feeding and respiration. Energy intake is necessary for protists’ survival.
Protistology is a scientific discipline devoted to the study of protists, a highly diverse group of eukaryotic organisms. All eukaryotes apart from animals, plants and fungi are considered protists. [1]