The gregarines are a group of Apicomplexan alveolates, classified as the Gregarinasina or Gregarinia. The large (roughly half a millimeter) parasites inhabit the intestines of many invertebrates. They are not found in any vertebrates. Gregarines are closely related to both Toxoplasma and Plasmodium, which cause toxoplasmosis and malaria, respectively. Both protists use protein complexes similar to those that are formed by the gregarines for gliding motility and for invading target cells. This makes the gregarines excellent models for studying gliding motility, with the goal of developing treatment options for both toxoplasmosis and malaria. Thousands of different species of gregarine are expected to be found in insects, and 99% of these gregarine species still need to be described. Each insect species can be the host of multiple gregarine species. One of the most-studied gregarines is Gregarina garnhami. In general, gregarines are regarded as a very successful group of parasites, as their hosts are distributed over the entire planet. Life cycle Gregarines occur in both aquatic and terrestrial environments. Although they are usually transmitted by the orofaecal route, some are transmitted with the host's gametes during copulation, e.g., Monocystis. In all species, four or more sporozoites (depending on the species), equipped with an apical complex, escape from the oocysts in a process called excystation. They find their way to the appropriate body cavity, and penetrate host cells in their immediate environment. The sporozoites begin to feed within the host cell and develop into larger trophozoites. In some species, the sporozoites and trophozoites are capable of asexual replication – a process called schizogony or merogony. In all species, two mature trophozoites eventually pair up in a process known as syzygy and develop into gamonts. During syzygy, gamont orientation differs between species (side-to-side, head-to-tail). A gametocyst wall forms around each gamont pair, which then begins to divide into hundreds of gametes. Zygotes are produced by the fusion of two gametes, and these, in turn, become surrounded by an oocyst wall. Within the oocyst, meiosis occurs, yielding the sporozoites. Hundreds of oocysts accumulate within each gametocyst; these are released via a host's faeces or via host death and decay. Gregarines have thus far been reported to infect over 3000 invertebrate species. Taxonomy The gregarines were recognised as a taxon by Grasse in 1953. The three orders into which they are currently divided were created by Levine et al. in 1980. Currently, about 250 genera and