What is an amoeba? Amoebae are single-celled microbes that "crawl" and can sometimes eat your brain. Amoeba proteus with algae filled vacuoles for food production. (Image credit: Getty Images ) "Amoeba" is a term that describes a simple eukaryotic organism that moves in a characteristic crawling manner. However, a comparison of the genetic content of different amoebae shows that these organisms are not necessarily closely related. WHAT DOES AN AMOEBA LOOK LIKE? All living organisms can be broadly divided into two groups — prokaryotes and eukaryotes — characterized by the relative complexity of their cells. Eukaryotes are highly organized unicellular or multicellular organisms such as animals and plants. Prokaryotes, on the other hand, are basic single-celled organisms such as bacteria and archaea. Amoebae are eukaryotes. Their individual cells, like those of other eukaryotes, have certain distinguishing features: Their cell contents are enclosed in a cell membrane, ...
