Protists are simple eukaryotic organisms that are neither plants nor animals or fungi.

Protists
are unicellular in nature but can also be found as a colony of cells. Most protists live in
water, damp terrestrial environments or even as parasites.
The term ‘Protista’ is derived from the Greek word “protistos”, meaning “the very

first“. These organisms are usually unicellular and the cell of these organisms contains a
nucleus which is bound to the organelles. Some of them even possess structures that aid
locomotion like flagella or cilia.
Scientists speculate that protists form a link between plants, animals and fungi as these three
kingdoms diverged from a common protist-like ancestor, billions of years ago. Though this
“protists-like” ancestor is a hypothetical organism, we can trace some genes found in modern
animals and plants to these ancient organisms.

Therefore, these organisms are traditionally considered the first eukaryotic forms of life and
a predecessor to plants, animals and fungi. Certain organelles may be found in some protist
cells and not in others. Protists that have characteristics in common with animal cells also
have mitochondria, which provide energy for the cell. Protists that are similar to plant
cells have a cell wall and chloroplasts. Chloroplasts make photosynthesis possible in these
cells.

Characteristics of Kingdom Protista

The primary feature of all protists is that they are eukaryotic organisms. This means that they
have a membrane-enclosed nucleus. Other characteristic features of Kingdom Protista are as
follows:

1. These are usually aquatic, present in the soil or in areas with moisture.
2. Most protist species are unicellular organisms, however, there are a few multicellular
protists such as kelp. Some species of kelp grow so large that they exceed over 100
feet in height. (Giant Kelp).
3. Just like any other eukaryote, the cells of these species have a nucleus and membrane-
bound organelles.
4. They may be autotrophic or heterotrophic in nature. An autotrophic organism can
create its own food and survive. A heterotrophic organism, on the other hand, has to
derive nutrition from other organisms such as plants or animals to survive.
5. Symbiosis is observed in the members of this class. For instance, kelp (seaweed) is a
multicellular protist that provides otters, protection from predators amidst its thick
kelp. In turn, the otters eat sea urchins that tend to feed on kelp.
6. Parasitism is also observed in protists. Species such as Trypanosoma protozoa can
cause sleeping sickness in humans.
7. Protists exhibit locomotion through cilia and flagella. A few organisms belonging to
the kingdom Protista have pseudopodia that help them to move.
8. Protista reproduces by asexual means. The sexual method of reproduction is extremely
rare and occurs only during times of stress.
Classification of Protista
Kingdom Protista is classified into the following:

Protozoa
Protozoans are unicellular organisms. Historically, protozoans were called “animal”
protists as they are heterotrophic and showed animal-like behaviours.
There are also parasitic protozoans which live in the cells of larger organisms. Most of the
members do not have a predefined shape. For instance, an amoeba can change its shape
indefinitely but a paramecium has a definite slipper-like shape. The most well-known
examples of protozoans are amoeba, paramecium, and euglena. Unlike other members of
this group, euglena is a free-living protozoan that has chlorophyll, which means it can
make its own food.
The protozoans can be divided into four major groups:

i.Amoeboid protozoans – Mostly found in water bodies, either fresh or saline. They have
pseudopodia (false feet) which help to change their shape and to capture and engulf food.
E.g. Amoeba. These temporary extensions of the cytoplasm allow the organism to move as
well as to capture and engulf organic material through a type of endocytosis known as
phagocytosis, or cell eating. Amoebas are amorphous and move by changing their shape.
They reside in aquatic and moist environments, and some species are parasitic.

ii. Flagellated protozoans – As the name suggests, the members of this group have flagella.
They can be free-living as well as parasitic. E.g. Euglena.. Trypanosomes are examples of
heterotrophic protists that move with flagella. These long, whip-like appendages move back
and forth enabling movement. Trypanosomes are parasites that can infect animals and
humans. Some species cause African sleeping sickness which is transmitted to humans by
biting flies.

iii. Ciliated protozoans – They have cilia all over their body which help in locomotion as
well as nutrition. They are always aquatic. E.g. Paramecium.. Cilia are short, thread-like
protrusions that extend from the body and move in a sweeping motion. This motion allows
the organism to move and also pulls food (bacteria, algae. ect.) toward the paramecium's
mouth. Some paramecia live in mutualistic symbiotic relationships with green algae or with
certain bacteria.

iv. Sporozoans – These organisms are so-called because their life cycle has a spore-like
stage. For example, the malarial parasite, Plasmodium. Sporozoans are examples of protists
that do not posses structures that are used for locomotion. These protists are parasites that
feed off of their host and reproduce by the formation of spores. Sporozoans exhibit a type
of alternation of generations in their life cycle, in which they alternate between sexual and
asexual phases. Sporozoans are transmitted to humans by insect or other animal vectors.

-Toxoplasmosis is a disease caused by the sporozoan Toxoplasma gondii that can

be transmitted to humans by animals or can be contracted by ingesting contaminated food or
water. In severe toxoplasmosis, T. gondii damage eyes or other organs, such as the brain.
Toxoplasmosis does not typically develop in people with healthy immune systems.
Another sporozoan, known as plasmodium, causes malaria in humans. These protists are
transmitted to mammals by insect bites, commonly by mosquitoes, and infect red blood cells.
Plasmodium, in the merozoites stage of their life cycle, multiply within infected blood cells
causing them to rupture. Once released, the merozoites can infect other red blood cells.

2. Slime Moulds
Slime moulds are saprophytic organisms (they feed on dead and decaying matter). These are
tiny organisms that have many nuclei.
Usually, Slime moulds are characterized by the presence of aggregates called plasmodium
and are even visible to the naked eye.

Slime molds and water molds are examples of protists that exhibit limited motion. These
protists are similar to fungi in that they decompose organic matter and recycle nutrients
back into the environment. They live in moist soils among decaying leaves or wood.

There are two types of slime molds: plasmodial and cellular slime molds.

-A plasmodial slime mold exists as an enormous cell formed by the fusion of several
individual cells. This huge blob of cytoplasm with many nuclei resembles slime that moves
slowly in an amoeba-like fashion. Under harsh conditions, plasmodial slime molds produce
reproductive stalks called sporangia that contain spores. When released into the environment,
these spores may germinate producing more plasmodial slime molds.

-Cellular slime molds spend most of their life cycle as single-celled organisms. They too
are capable of amoeba-like movement. When under stressful conditions, these cells unite
forming a large group of individual cells that resemble a slug. The cells form a reproductive
stalk or fruiting body that produces spores.

Water molds live in aquatic and moist terrestrial environments. They feed on decaying
matter, and some are parasites that live off of plants, animals, algae, and fungi. Species of the
Oomycota phylum exhibit filamentous or thread-like growth, similar to fungi. However,
unlike fungi, oomycetes have a cell wall that is composed of cellulose and not chitin. They
can also reproduce both sexually and asexually.

3. Chrysophytes, 4. Dinoflagellates and 5. Euglenoids

These form another category under kingdom Protista. These are generally single-celled
or multicellular organisms. These are photosynthetic, found mostly in freshwater sources or
marine lakes. They are characterized by a stiff cell wall.
Example of chrysophytes include diatoms and golden algae. They are characterised by the
presence of a hard siliceous cell wall. Diatomaceous earth is formed due to the accumulation
of cell wall deposits. They are photosynthetic organisms. (Diatoms (Kingdom Protista) may be
extremely abundant in both freshwater and marine ecosystems; it is estimated that 20% to 25% of
all organic carbon fixation on the planet is carried out by diatom). They are a group of algae
commonly found in lakes. They are sometimes referred to as golden-brown algae due to their coloration
from specific photosynthetic pigments. They are often unicellular and have a flagellum, allowing them to be
mobile in the water. There are over 1,000 known species of chrysophytes. Any given lake may have several
dozen. Each species has defined optimum and tolerances for specific environmental conditions (pH, salinity,
temperature, etc.). Some species have a siliceous scale or plate attached to their cell wall. When scaled-
chrysophyte cells die, the scales settle to the bottom of the lake and are preserved in the sediments. This
offers scientists the opportunity to retrieve these sediments and reconstruct which chrysophytes were living
in the lake over long periods of time. B
Dinoflagellates are photosynthetic and found in various different colours, according to the
pigment present in them. They show bioluminescence and known to cause red tide. Protists
known as dinoflagellates or fire algae, are plankton that live in marine and freshwater
environments. At times they can reproduce rapidly producing harmful algae blooms. Some
dinogflagellates are also bioluminescent.
Euglenoids are the link between plants and animals. They lack a cell wall but perform
photosynthesis. In the absence of sunlight, they act as a heterotroph and feed on small
organisms. The outer body covering is a protein-rich layer known as a pellicle. E.g. Euglena,
Trachelomonas, etc. Photosynthetic euglena are similar to plant cells in that they contain
chloroplasts. It is thought that the chloroplasts were acquired as a result of endosymbiotic
relationships with green algae

Economic Importance of Protists

 Protists serve as the foundation of the food chain.

 Protists are symbionts – having a close relationship between two species in which, one
is benefited.
 Some protists also produce oxygen and may be used to produce biofuel.
 Protists are the primary sources of food for many animals.
 In some rare cases, Protists are harvested by humans for food and other industrial
applications.
 Phytoplankton is one of the sole food sources for whales
 Seaweed is an algae, which is considered a plant-like protist.
 Zooplankton is fed on by various sea creatures including shrimp and larval crabs.

Protista Characteristics

Protists reside under the Eukarya Domain and are thus classified as eukaryotes. Eukaryotic
organisms are distinguished from prokaryotes in that they have a nucleus that is surrounded
by a membrane. In addition to a nucleus, protists have additional organelles in their
cytoplasm. The endoplasmic reticulum and Golgi complexes are important for the synthesis
of proteins and exocytosis of cellular molecules. Many protists also have lysosomes, which
aid in the digestion of ingested organic material. Certain organelles may be found in some
protist cells and not in others. Protists that have characteristics in common with animal
cells also have mitochondria, which provide energy for the cell. Protists that are similar
to plant cells have a cell wall and chloroplasts. Chloroplasts make photosynthesis possible in
these cells.
  Nutrition Acquisition

Protists exhibit different methods of acquiring nutrition. Some are photosynthetic autotrophs,
meaning that they are self-feeders and capable of using sunlight to generate carbohydrates for
nutrition. Other protists are heterotrophs, which acquire nutrition through feeding on other
organisms. This is accomplished by phagocytosis, the process in which particles are engulfed
and digested internally. Still, other protists acquire nutrition predominately by absorbing
nutrients from their environment. Some protists may exhibit both photosynthetic and
heterotrophic forms of nutrient acquisition.

 Locomotion

While some protists are non-motile, others exhibit locomotion through different methods.
Some protists have flagella or cilia. These organelles are protrusions formed from specialized
groupings of microtubules that move to propel protists through their moist environment.
Other protists move by using temporary extensions of their cytoplasm known as
pseudopodia. These extensions are also valuable in allowing the protist to capture other
organisms that they feed on.

 Reproduction

The most common method of reproduction displayed in protists is asexual

reproduction. Sexual reproduction is possible, but typically only occurs during times of
stress. Some protists reproduce asexually by binary fission or multiple fission. Others
reproduce asexually by budding or through spore formation. In sexual
reproduction, gametes are produced by meiosis and unite at fertilization to produce new
individuals. Other protists, such as algae, exhibit a type of alternation of generations in which
they alternate between haploid and diploid stages in their life cycles.

 Movement With Pseudopodia

Amoebas are examples of protists that move using pseudopodia. These temporary extensions
of the cytoplasm allow the organism to move as well as to capture and engulf organic
material through a type of endocytosis known as phagocytosis, or cell eating. Amoebas are
amorphous and move by changing their shape. They reside in aquatic and moist
environments, and some species are parasitic.