The Gigaductidae are a family of

parasite Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The entomologist E. O. Wilson has ...

s in the

phylum In biology, a phylum (; plural: phyla) is a level of classification or taxonomic rank below kingdom and above class. Traditionally, in botany the term division has been used instead of phylum, although the International Code of Nomenclature f ...

Apicomplexa The Apicomplexa (also called Apicomplexia) are a large phylum of parasitic alveolates. Most of them possess a unique form of organelle that comprises a type of non-photosynthetic plastid called an apicoplast, and an apical complex structure. T ...

. Species in this family infect

Coleoptera Beetles are insects that form the order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Endopterygota. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 400,000 describ ...

(beetles) and

Orthoptera Orthoptera () is an order of insects that comprises the grasshoppers, locusts, and crickets, including closely related insects, such as the bush crickets or katydids and wētā. The order is subdivided into two suborders: Caelifera – grassho ...

(grasshoppers).

History

This family was created in 1948 by Filipponi.Filipponi A (1948) ''Gigaductus macrospora'' n. sp. revisione del genere ''Gigaductus''. Insitutzione della nuova famiglia ''Gigaductidae'' (Gregarinida). Archivio Zoologico Italiano 33:293–331

Taxonomy

There is one genus in this family - '' Gigaductus''. The type species in this family (and genus) is '' Gigaductus anchi''. Several other species in this family have described and these include '' Gigaductus aficanus'', '' Gigaductus agoni'', '' Gigaductus americanus'' and '' Gigaductus anchi''.

Lifecycle

The species in this family are spread by the oral-faecal route. Development occurs in the epithelial cells of the gut or rarely in the

Malpighian tubule The Malpighian tubule system is a type of excretory and osmoregulatory system found in some insects, myriapods, arachnids and tardigrades. The system consists of branching tubules extending from the alimentary canal that absorbs solutes, water, ...

s. The gamontocysts are enclosed in a thick gelatinous capsule. Syzygy and encystment occur in the lumen of the gut (or tubule). About 25-30 spores are generated from each gametocyst.

References

Apicomplexa families Parasites of insects {{Apicomplexa-stub