The ultrastructure of Encephalitozoon cuniculi growing in renal tubules of rabbits.

A wild type rabbit infected orally with cell culture-grown Encephalitozoon cuniculi. Twelve weeks after infection the rabbit was killed and blocks of kidney tissue were fixed for histology and electron microscopy. E. cuniculi were observed within kidney collecting tubule cells. The ultrastructure and development of E. cuniculi in these cells was similar to that described in cultured cells and peritoneal macrophages.