An amoeba is a single-celled organism composed of a jelly-liked structure called cytoplasm. It is generally used to refer to a group of protists. Since they are aquatic organisms, they can be found in ponds, rivers, and puddles. Some of them just float on the waters. Most of them stay at the bottom of plants to suck minerals. They feed on other organisms through phagocytosis or pinocytosis. In phagocytosis, amoebas wrap themselves around a cell to consume them. Pinocytosis entails the amoeba vesicles to take in nutrients from the food vacuoles. However, because of their extremely minute size, a person needs to use a microscope in order to see them.

Amoebas move in locomotion using their pseudopod, a tiny flexible composite that allows them to stretch out and travel. From time to time, they split in half, making two identical amoebas. This process is known as binary fission. When they become active, they form into ball called microbial cyst.

The earliest record of amoeba discover y is attributed to August Johann in 1757. He named it Der Kleine Proteus or “Little Proteus,” which is now similar to the Amoeba proteus structure at present. There are many kinds of amoeba such as Naegleria and Acanthamoeba. Another bacterial amoeba is known as Legionella. The Entamoeba histolytic is pathogenic to human. A person who drinks water that is infested with Entamoeba amoeba can potentially suffer from Amebiases.

Amebiasis is an illness affecting the outer lining of the large intestine. Early signs of Amebiases include stomach pain, vomiting, and headache. Some symptoms may not occur until three to four weeks of infestation. In severe cases, amebiases can spread into other organs such as the liver and brain. Individuals with stronger immune system and resistance rarely get infected with amoeba. Amebiases is very easy to diagnose using or fecal examination and can be treated by antibiotics.