They are largely motile and contain cilia on the surface that assist with movement and gathering food. The process by which T. thermophila obtains most of its nutrients is called phagocytosis. During phagocytosis, particles are consumed by a portion of the plasma membrane. This results in the formation of a vesicle, or phagosome, which then fuses with a lysosome in the cytoplasm to break down and digest food particles. However, a large fraction of bacteria engulfed by protozoa are not digested. Instead, they remain metabolically active and survive to be discharged to the outside environment (Aijaz and Koudelka, 2017). The discharge of these indigestible materials occurs when the membrane of the phagosome reaches the opposite end of the plasma membrane and fuses with it to release the
They are largely motile and contain cilia on the surface that assist with movement and gathering food. The process by which T. thermophila obtains most of its nutrients is called phagocytosis. During phagocytosis, particles are consumed by a portion of the plasma membrane. This results in the formation of a vesicle, or phagosome, which then fuses with a lysosome in the cytoplasm to break down and digest food particles. However, a large fraction of bacteria engulfed by protozoa are not digested. Instead, they remain metabolically active and survive to be discharged to the outside environment (Aijaz and Koudelka, 2017). The discharge of these indigestible materials occurs when the membrane of the phagosome reaches the opposite end of the plasma membrane and fuses with it to release the