The contractile vacuole of paramecium multimicronucleata

Abstract Each contractile vacuole system of Paramecium multimicronucleata is made up of a number of components, some temporary and others permanent. The contracting vacuole with its membrane is a temporary structure as are the vesicles which fuse to form it. The vacuole discharges its contents to the exterior leaving a vestige closing the pore. The pore, with its discharging tubule and the feeding canals are permanent cell organelles. The feeding canals end in injection tubules which extend up to the pore. The vesicles, which later fuse to form the vacuole, are formed at the proximal end of the injection canals, leaving a membrane closing the canal, much as a food vacuole is formed at the gullet. The canal‐fed contractile vacuole of Paramecium is very similar to the vesicle‐fed vacuole of Euplotes both as to its origin and its fate. The Nassonov homology is rejected.