Archamoebae facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Archamoebae |
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Archamoebae
Cavalier-Smith, 1983
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The Archamoebae are a fascinating group of tiny, single-celled organisms. They are a type of amoeba. What makes them special is that they do not have mitochondria. Mitochondria are like the power factories inside most cells. Most living things have them, so Archamoebae are quite unusual.
Contents
Where Archamoebae Live
This group includes many different kinds of amoebae. Some Archamoebae live inside animals. They can be parasites or commensals.
- Parasites are organisms that live in or on another living thing (called a host) and get their food from the host, often harming it.
- Commensals are organisms that live with another living thing. They benefit from the relationship, but they do not harm or help their host.
For example, Entamoeba and Endolimax are types of Archamoebae that live inside animals.
Archamoebae and Health
Some Archamoebae can cause health problems in humans. These are called pathogens. One well-known example is Entamoeba histolytica. This amoeba can cause a sickness called amoebic dysentery. This disease affects the intestines.
Free-Living Archamoebae
Not all Archamoebae live inside animals. Other types of Archamoebae live freely in freshwater habitats. These free-living Archamoebae often have whip-like tails called flagella. They use these flagella to move around.
Most Archamoebae have one nucleus and one flagellum. The nucleus is like the control center of the cell. However, there is a giant amoeba called Pelomyxa. This amoeba is very large and has many nuclei and many flagella.
How Archamoebae are Related to Other Life
Scientists have studied the genes of Archamoebae. They found that Archamoebae are part of the larger group called Amoebozoa. It seems that Archamoebae once had mitochondria, but they lost them over a very long time.
Archamoebae are closely related to slime moulds. Slime moulds are another interesting group of organisms. The Archamoebae that live as parasites or commensals, like Entamoeba and Endolimax, developed separately from their free-living ancestors. This means that the ability to live inside animals evolved more than once in this group.
See also
In Spanish: Archamoebae para niños
