Anaeramoeba is a genus of anaerobic protists of uncertain phylogenetic position, first described in 2016.

Anaeramoeba
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
(unranked): Excavata
Phylum: Metamonada
Family: Anaeramoebidae
Táborský, Pánek & Čepička 2017
Genus: Anaeramoeba
Táborský, Pánek & Čepička 2017
Type species
Anaeramoeba flamelloides
Táborský, Pánek & Čepička 2017
Species
  • A. flamelloides
  • A. gargantua
  • A. ignava
  • A. megacephala
  • A. oblonga
  • A. parva
  • A. pumila

Description

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As the name implies, Anaeramoeba are anaerobic amoeboid organisms which form a fan-like shape similar to that of Flamella. At least two species can also sometimes assume flagellate forms; with either two or four flagella. They contain double-membrane bound organelles called hydrogenosomes, assumed to be derived from mitochondria,[1] usually associated with colonies of unidentified, rod-shaped bacteria.[2]

Discovery and classification

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Anaeramoeba specimens were first isolated in 2016, from samples shallow water anoxic ocean sediments collected from around the world. Despite the similarities to Flamella in both morphology and environment, genetic analyses found that Anaeramoeba do not belong within Amoebozoa.[2] The precise phylogenetic position was not identified with strong support, and the genus may represent a newly identified, deep-branching group of protists.[3] Recent classifications have listed them as sister to Parabasalia in Metamonada.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b Stairs, Courtney W.; Táborský, Petr; Salomaki, Eric D.; Kolisko, Martin; Pánek, Tomáš; Eme, Laura; Hradilová, Miluše; Vlček, Čestmír; Jerlström-Hultqvist, Jon; Roger, Andrew J.; Čepička, Ivan (2021-12-20). "Anaeramoebae are a divergent lineage of eukaryotes that shed light on the transition from anaerobic mitochondria to hydrogenosomes". Current Biology. 31 (24): 5605–5612.e5. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2021.10.010. ISSN 0960-9822. PMID 34710348. S2CID 240054026.
  2. ^ a b Táborský, Petr; Pánek, Tomáš; Čepička, Ivan (2017). "Anaeramoebidae fam. nov., a Novel Lineage of Anaerobic Amoebae and Amoeboflagellates of Uncertain Phylogenetic Position". Protist. 168 (5): 495–526. doi:10.1016/j.protis.2017.07.005. ISSN 1434-4610. PMID 28985627.
  3. ^ Burki, Fabien; Roger, Andrew J.; Brown, Matthew W.; Simpson, Alastair G.B. (2020). "The New Tree of Eukaryotes". Trends in Ecology & Evolution. 35 (1): 43–55. doi:10.1016/j.tree.2019.08.008. ISSN 0169-5347. PMID 31606140.