Parts of Amoeba

Amoeba, being a unicellular organism, does not have distinct anatomical parts like multicellular organisms. However, it possesses various structures and regions that contribute to its cellular functions. An amoeba has four major parts including Pseudopodia, Plasmalemma, Cytoplasm, and Endoplasmic Organelles.

Pseudopodia

Key features of psuedopodia are:

• It is a blunt-ended finger-like extension that helps to move amoeba.
• Pseudopodia is also known as the lobopodia.
• These are made by both ectoplasm and endoplasm.
• Liquified and forward-flowing cytoplasm is responsible for forming these cylindrical structures.

Plasmalemma

Key features of plasmalemma are:

• It is a thin and invisible cell membrane.
• The thickness of this elastic membrane varies between 0.00025 mm to 2 microns.
• It is a double-layer lipid made of protein molecules.
• Mucoproteins are generally attached to the outer surface of the plasmalemma.
• It is a self-healing membrane which can regenerate when it is broken.
• Plasmalemma exchange the water molecules and with this amoeba performs its respiration.
• It also helps amoeba to form pseudopodia and capture foods.

Cytoplasm

Key features of cytoplasm are:

• Plasmalemma is surrounded by cytoplasm which contains different organelles.
• Cytoplasam is divided into two parts as outer ectoplasm and an inner endoplasm.
• The ectoplasm is a thin and clear hyaline layer located under the plasmalemma.
• Endoplasam is a granular fluid which is surrounded by ectoplasam. It contains several organelles.

Endoplasmic Organelles

Key features of endoplasmic organelles are:

• Endoplasm contains a single conspicuous nucleus that contains over 500 small spherical chromosomes.
• Water Globules are small and colorless. They maintain the balance of the body.
• Amoeba also have mitochondria which look like rods and dots.
• There are fat and carbohydrate particles present in the endoplasm. These are the stored foods present in the body of amoeba.

Vacuoles

Vacuoles are the endoplasmic organelles which plays a major role in a amoeba’s body.

• A contractile vacuole is clear and round in structure. It is filled with watery fluid. They help in the process of osmoregulation, respiration, and excretion.
• Food Vacuoles are different in size and scattered in the endoplasm. They help to digest the food particles with digestive enzymes.

Amoeba or Amoeboid is a transparent single-celled eukaryotic microorganism with a jelly-like cytoplasm structure. It can change its structure and depends on division-based reproduction. It can adapt to ever-changing surroundings to survive. Amoeba is irregular in shape with two protoplasmic layers, a single nucleus, and a contractile vacuole. They are generally found in the seas, rivers, lakes, or dump soil and can cause so many diseases for humans, like Amebiasis. In this article, we will discuss the Amoeba, Parts of amoeba, Biological Classification of Amoeba, and its Characteristics and Structure in detail.