''Rhabdospora'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

assigned to cells found in a variety of fish. First reported in 1892, there has since been disagreement over whether ''Rhabdospora'' represents a parasite of the phylum '' Apicomplexa'' or a specialized fish cell.

History

In 1892, Thélohan described unusual looking cells from the intestine of various fishes. In 1895, Laguessé named these cells ''Rhabdospora thelohani'' or "rodlet cells", determining them to be parasites that infect the fish. Since then, there has been disagreement over whether ''R. thelohani'' is an Apicomplexan parasite or a specialized intestinal fish cell.

Description

The exact nature and status of this genus remains an open question. Some authors consider the descriptions of this species to be an error while others have reported features consistent with its inclusion in the

Apicomplexia The Apicomplexa (also called Apicomplexia) are a large phylum of parasitic Alveolata, 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 stru ...

Host records

* Spirlin ('' Alburnoides bipunctatus ohridanus'') * Antarctic snaggletooth ('' Borostomias antarcticus'') * European chub ('' Leuciscus cephalus albus'') * Minnow (''

Phoxinus phoxinus The Eurasian minnow, minnow, or common minnow (''Phoxinus phoxinus'') is a small species of Fresh water, freshwater fish in the carp family (biology), family Cyprinidae. It is the type species of genus ''Phoxinus''. It is ubiquitous throughout mu ...

'') * South European roach (''

Rutilus rubilio ''Sarmarutilus rubilio'', known as the rovella or the South European roach, is a species of freshwater fish in the family Cyprinidae. It is native in the Tuscano-Latium district of Italy, both in waters draining to the Adriatic and Tyrrhenian S ...

'') * Three-spined Stickleback (''

Gasterosteus aculeatus The three-spined stickleback (''Gasterosteus aculeatus'') is a fish native to most inland and coastal waters north of 30°N. It has long been a subject of scientific study for many reasons. It shows great morphological variation throughout its ra ...

'')

References

Apicomplexa genera {{Apicomplexa-stub