New aspects of the life cycle of Pneumocystis carinii

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Abstract
Pneumocystis is recognized as a cause of pneumonitis in vertebrates, including man. So far an extra-cellular life cycle has been proposed; thick-walled cysts are the site of the formation of so-called intracystic bodies. These intracystic bodies are set free and are supposed to develop into free living thin-walled pneumocysts (trophic stage). Based on elaborative ultrastructural studies, data on the existence of both intra-cellular and extra-cellular stages of the parasite are presented which result in a new proposal for the life cycle of the parasite.