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Myzocytosis (from Greek: myzein, (μυζεῖν) meaning "to suck" and kytos (κύτος) meaning "container", hence referring to "cell") is a method of feeding found in some heterotrophic organisms. It is also called "cellular vampirism" as the predatory cell pierces the cell wall and/or cell membrane of the prey cell with a feeding tube, the conoid, sucks out the cellular content and digests it.

Myzocytosis is found in Myzozoa and also in some species of Ciliophora (both comprise the alveolates). A classic example of myzocytosis is the feeding method of the infamous predatory ciliate, Didinium, where it is often depicted devouring a hapless Paramecium. The suctorian ciliates were originally thought to have fed exclusively through myzocytosis, sucking out the cytoplasm of prey via superficially drinking straw-like pseudopodia. It is now understood that suctorians do not feed through myzocytosis, but actually, instead, manipulate and envenomate captured prey with their tentacle-like pseudopodia.

References

1. Cavalier-Smith, T.; Chao, E.E. (2004). "Protalveolate phylogeny and systematics and the origins of Sporozoa and dinoflagellates (Phylum Myzozoa nom. Nov.)". European Journal of Protistology. 40 (3): 185–212. doi:10.1016/j.ejop.2004.01.002.
2. Didinium eats Paramecium. Retrieved 21 May 2020.
3. Rudzinska, M. A. (1973). "Do Suctoria Really Feed by Suction?". BioScience. 23 (2): 87–94. doi:10.2307/1296568. JSTOR 1296568.

Further reading

• Eva C. M. Nowack and Michael Melkonian (2010) Endosymbiotic associations within protists Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B 12 March 2010 vol. 365 no. 1541 699-712

v t e Feeding behaviours
Carnivores	adult Avivore Egg predation Hematophagy Insectivore Lepidophagy Man-eating animal Molluscivore Mucophagy Myrmecophagy Ophiophagy Piscivore Spongivore Vermivore reproductive Oophagy Paedophagy Placentophagy Breastfeeding Weaning cannibalistic Human cannibalism Autocannibalism Sexual cannibalism
Herbivores	Folivore Florivore Frugivore Graminivore Seed predation Nectarivore Mellivory Palynivore Xylophagy Osteophagy
Cellular	Phagocytosis Myzocytosis
Others	Microbivory Bacterivore Fungivore Coprophagia Detritivore Geophagia Omnivore Planktivore Saprophagy Xenophagy Lithotroph Plastivore Pica
Methods	Predation Ambush predator Apex predator Egg predator Intraguild predator Pursuit predator Aquatic predation Lunge feeder Pivot feeder Ram feeder Suction feeder Bait balls Bottom feeder Feeding frenzy Filter feeder Browsing Cattle feeding Fodder Grazing Forage Hypercarnivore Hypocarnivore Mesocarnivore Parasitism Scavenger Surplus killing Trophallaxis
Antipredator adaptation Carnivorous plant Carnivorous fungus Carnivorous protist Category:Eating behaviors

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