''Cytauxzoon'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of parasitic

alveolates The alveolates (meaning "pitted like a honeycomb") are a group of protists, considered a major unranked clade or superphylum within Eukaryota. They are currently grouped with the Stramenopiles and Rhizaria among the protists with tubulocristat ...

in the

phylum In biology, a phylum (; : phyla) is a level of classification, or taxonomic rank, that is below Kingdom (biology), kingdom and above Class (biology), class. Traditionally, in botany the term division (taxonomy), division has been used instead ...

Apicomplexa The Apicomplexa (also called Apicomplexia; single: apicomplexan) are organisms of a large phylum of mainly parasitic alveolates. Most possess a unique form of organelle structure that comprises a type of non-photosynthetic plastid called an ap ...

. The name is derived from the

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

meaning an increase in the number of cells in an animal.

History

This genus was created in 1948 when Neitz and Thomas proposed the name ''Cytauxzoon'' to accommodate the ''

Theileria ''Theileria'' is a genus of parasites that belongs to the phylum Apicomplexa, and is closely related to ''Plasmodium''. Two ''Theileria'' species, ''T. annulata'' and ''T. parva'', are important cattle parasites. ''T. annulata'' causes tropical ...

'' like parasites with preerythrocytic schizogony in histiocytes. This is in contrast to schizogony in lymphocytes with the latter being characteristic for ''Theileria''. This genus was originally described in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

ruminant Ruminants are herbivorous grazing or browsing artiodactyls belonging to the suborder Ruminantia that are able to acquire nutrients from plant-based food by fermenting it in a specialized stomach prior to digestion, principally through microb ...

s but is now known to be common in

felid Felidae ( ) is the Family (biology), family of mammals in the Order (biology), order Carnivora colloquially referred to as cats. A member of this family is also called a felid ( ). The 41 extant taxon, extant Felidae species exhibit the gre ...

s including the domestic cat (''

Felis catus The cat (''Felis catus''), also referred to as the domestic cat or house cat, is a small domesticated carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species of the family Felidae. Advances in archaeology and genetics have shown that the d ...

''). It was first described in the African grey duiker ('' Sylvicapra grimmia''). ''C. felis'' was first described by Kier in 1979.

Taxonomy

This genus is closely related to ''

'' but differs from it by replicating in

macrophage Macrophages (; abbreviated MPhi, φ, MΦ or MP) are a type of white blood cell of the innate immune system that engulf and digest pathogens, such as cancer cells, microbes, cellular debris and foreign substances, which do not have proteins that ...

s rather than

lymphocyte A lymphocyte is a type of white blood cell (leukocyte) in the immune system of most vertebrates. Lymphocytes include T cells (for cell-mediated and cytotoxic adaptive immunity), B cells (for humoral, antibody-driven adaptive immunity), an ...

Description

Life cycle

The parasites are transmitted by tick bite. After a cat or other host is bitten by an infected tick the parasites infect mononuclear phagocytes. Within these they undergo asexual reproduction (

schizont Apicomplexans, a group of intracellular parasites, have life cycle stages that allow them to survive the wide variety of environments they are exposed to during their complex life cycle. Each stage in the life cycle of an apicomplexan organism ...

s). As these leukocytes become engorged with schizonts, they line the lumens of veins and may causing obstruction of blood flow. The schizonts develop into

merozoite Apicomplexans, a group of intracellular parasites, have life cycle stages that allow them to survive the wide variety of environments they are exposed to during their complex life cycle. Each stage in the life cycle of an apicomplexan organism i ...

s which eventually cause host cell rupture and enter the blood. These intravascular merozoites infect variable numbers of erythrocytes. An infected host is then bitten by a tick. The parasites undergo sexual reproduction in the tick's gut.

Microscopic appearances

The intra erythrocytic forms range in size between 0.8 and 2.3 μm within a mean of 1.64 μm.

Host records

*''C. felis'' — (''

'') *''C. felis'' — Florida panther ('' Puma concolor couguar'') *''C. felis'' — bobcat (''

Lynx rufus The bobcat (''Lynx rufus''), also known as the wildcat, bay lynx, or red lynx, is one of the four extant species within the medium-sized wild cat genus ''Lynx''. Native to North America, it ranges from southern Canada through most of the con ...

'') *''C. felis'' — tiger (''

Panthera tigris The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is a large cat and a member of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Asia. It has a powerful, muscular body with a large head and paws, a long tail and orange fur with black, mostly vertical stripes. It is tradition ...

'')

Unknown parasite species

*Ocelot (''

Leopardus pardalis The ocelot (''Leopardus pardalis'') is a medium-sized spotted Felidae, wild cat that reaches at the shoulders and weighs between on average. It is native to the southwestern United States, Mexico, Central America, Central and South America, ...

'') *Jaguar (''

Panthera onca The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large cat species and the only living member of the genus ''Panthera'' that is native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the biggest cat species in the Americas a ...

'')

Clinical

In cats infection with this parasite is known as cytauxzoonosis and is commonly fatal.

Vectors

*Lone-star tick (

Amblyomma americanum ''Amblyomma americanum'', also known as the lone star tick, northeastern water tick, turkey tick, and cricker tick, is a type of tick indigenous to much of the eastern United States and Mexico that bites painlessly and commonly goes unnoticed, r ...

) *American dog tick (''

Dermacentor variabilis ''Dermacentor variabilis'', also known as the American dog tick or wood tick, is a species of tick that is known to carry bacteria responsible for several diseases in humans, including Rocky Mountain spotted fever and tularemia (''Francisella tul ...

'') *''

Rhipicephalus appendiculatus ''Rhipicephalus appendiculatus'', the brown ear tick, is a hard tick found in Africa where it spreads the parasite '' Theileria parva'', the cause of East Coast fever in cattle. The tick has a three-host life-cycle, spending around 10% of its li ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5201298 Apicomplexa genera