title: Insights from the DNA databases: approaches to the phylogenetic structure of Acanthamoeba.
abstract: Species of Acanthamoeba have been traditionally described using morphology (primarily cyst structure), or cytology of nuclear division (used by Pussard and Pons, 1977). Twenty-plus putative species were proposed based on such criteria. Morphology, however, is often plastic, dependent upon culture conditions. DNA sequences of the nuclear small subunit (18S) rRNA that can be used for the study of the phylogeny of Acanthamoeba have increased from a single sequence in 1986 to more than 1800 in 2013. Some of the patterns of the sequence data for Acanthamoeba are reviewed, and some of the insights that this data illuminates are illustrated. In particular, the data suggest the existence of 20 or more genotypic types, a number not dissimilar to the number of named species of Acanthamoeba. However, molecular studies make clear that the relationship between phylogenetic relatedness and species names as we know them for Acanthamoeba is tenuous at best.
authors.affiliation: Department of Evolution, Ecology and Organismal Biology, The Ohio State University, 388 Aronoff Laboratory, 318 W. 12th Ave, Columbus, OH 43210, USA; Department of Molecular Genetics, The Ohio State University, 388 Aronoff Laboratory, 318 W. 12th Ave, Columbus, OH 43210, USA. Electronic address: fuerst.1@osu.edu.
authors.forename: Paul A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Fuerst
mesh_terms: D000048:Acanthamoeba / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics*; D000562:Amebiasis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000469:parasitology; D016054:DNA, Protozoan / Q000737:chemistry*; D004275:DNA, Ribosomal / Q000737:chemistry; D030561:Databases, Nucleic Acid / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005838:Genotype; D010802:Phylogeny; D016053:RNA, Protozoan / Q000235:genetics; D012337:RNA, Ribosomal, 18S / Q000235:genetics*; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA
chemical_list: D016054:DNA, Protozoan; D004275:DNA, Ribosomal; D016053:RNA, Protozoan; D012337:RNA, Ribosomal, 18S
keywords: 18S rRNA gene; Acanthamoeba; Phylogenetic analysis; Sequence types; Species names