sporozoa

noun plural

spo·ro·zoa ˌspōr-ə-ˈzō-ə, ˌspȯr-

capitalized : a large class of strictly parasitic protozoans that pass through a complicated life cycle usually involving alternation of a sexual with an asexual generation, that often require two or more dissimilar hosts to complete their life cycle, that are typically immobile and usually intracellular parasites, and that include many serious pathogens (as the malaria parasites, coccidia, and babesias) compare apicomplexa

: protozoans of the class Sporozoa