Abstract

A new microsporidium is reported infesting the enterocytes of a Haitian patient with AIDS. The stages observed were diplokaryotic cells, sporogonial plasmodia, unikaryotic sporoblasts, and spores. Neither a sporophorous vesicle (pansporoblastic membrane) nor parasitophorous vacuole were differentiated around the developmental stages, which were in direct contact with the host cell cytoplasm. The polar tube (5-6 coils) was differentiated before fission of the sporogonial plasmodium. The mature spores measured 1.5 m̈m × 0.5 m̈. The spore wall was very thin as the endospore was absent or poorly differentiated. The organism is named Enterocytozoon bieneusi n. g., n. sp. and is assigned to the suborder Apansporoblastina.