Until recently it seemed that amoebae of the genus Thecamoeba can be reliably identified using light-microscopic characters, like the size and shape of the cell, a characteristic pattern of folds and ridges and structure of the nucleus. However, recent molecular studies show the presence of sibling species that can be reliably distinguished based on the gene sequence data only. Here we describe a new terrestrial species, Thecamoeba foliovenanda n. sp. This species is almost identical with T. similis in light-microscopy, which has minor differences in the ultrastructure but considerable differences in the SSU rRNA gene sequence. We investigated the light-microscopic data, as well as transmission electron-microscopic images and videorecords on the type strain of Thecamoeba similis 1583/8 and performed its comparison with the new species. This study further supports the conclusion that species of the genus Thecamoeba nowadays require gene sequencing for reliable identification and species distinction.
Original languageEnglish
Article number125716
JournalEuropean Journal of Protistology
Volume76
Early online date4 Jun 2020
DOIs
StatePublished - Oct 2020

    Research areas

  • Amoebozoa, Phylogeny, Sibling species, Systematics, Thecamoeba

    Scopus subject areas

  • Microbiology

ID: 49048191