Zoospore

A zoospore is a motile asexual spore that moves through water using one or more flagella. It occurs in several groups of algae, fungi, and fungus-like organisms.

Flagellum: A whip-like cellular appendage that generates movement or fluid flow. Zoospores swim by beating one or more flagella.
Spore: A reproductive or survival unit capable of developing into an organism without fusion with another cell. Zoospores are one motile kind within the broader category of spores.
Phytophthora infestans: An oomycete pathogen that causes potato late blight and tomato blight. Its motile zoospores spread infection in water films and wet soil.
Aplanospore: A nonmotile asexual spore formed without flagella. It is the direct non-swimming counterpart to a zoospore.
Chemotaxis: Directed movement of an organism or cell in response to a chemical gradient. Chemical cues can guide swimming zoospores toward favorable settlement sites.
Asexual reproduction: Reproduction that produces offspring without the fusion of gametes. A zoospore can found a new individual without fertilization.
Saprolegnia: A genus of water molds that includes pathogens of fish and fish eggs. Its swimming zoospores disperse in aquatic habitats and contribute to infections.
Conidium: An asexual fungal spore produced externally, typically without a motile stage. Conidia disperse without the flagellar swimming used by zoospores.
Phototaxis: Movement toward or away from a light source. Light can orient the swimming of zoospores in photosynthetic organisms.
Mitosis: Cell division that produces daughter nuclei with the same chromosome number as the parent nucleus. In many organisms, zoospore formation follows mitotic cell divisions.

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