Application of the serial sectioning and tridimensional reconstruction techniques to the morphological study of the Plasmodium falciparum mitochondrion.

The use of serial sectioning followed by tridimensional reconstruction is a convenient way to study the spatial morphology of any structure (cell or organelle). This method was applied to the study of organelles of Plasmodium falciparum (FCR3) and enabled clarification of morphological features of the mitochondrion. The mitochondrion is polymorphic; in single sections it may be rounded, elongated or branched in shape. Its matrix may be dense or transparent, and it may or may not possess cristae. The 3-D reconstruction indicated that the mitochondrion is single in P. falciparum. Its form varies according to the age of the trophozoite. It becomes branched, and each lobe of the mitochondrion follows a daughter nucleus during the formation of merozoites.