Oxymonadida

Classification

Order of Mastigophora.

General Information

These flagellates exclusively inhabit the intestine of wood-feeding insects (apparently supporting their digestion); they are uninuclear and usually have 3 free flagella and a recurrent one that is inserted laterally at the apical pole. They are characterized by the occurrence of an axostyle, which consists of many rows of microtubules and thus differs from that of the trichomonadida, where only a single row is formed (Trichomonadida, Fig. 1). Due to bridges between the microtubules, a gliding effect is possible, leading to a regular bending of the axostyle; this ultimately produces the cellular movement. Transmission occurs in some species via fecally passed cysts.