amoeboidtype

Amoeboid type refers to cells or organisms that move and feed using amoeboid locomotion, a mode of movement driven by the cytoplasm forming temporary protrusions called pseudopodia. These pseudopodia extend, anchor, and pull the cell body forward, producing highly flexible and irregular shapes.

Key features include a deformable cell body, frequent shape changes, and the ability to crawl over substrates or through tissues. Pseudopodia can be lobose, filopodial, or other forms, and movement relies on dynamic actin remodeling and, in some contexts, myosin-driven contractility. Feeding commonly occurs by phagocytosis or endocytosis, with the cytoplasm organized into a clearer hyaloplasm and a more granular granulosome.

In biology, the amoeboid type is most famously exemplified by true amoebae, such as those in the Amoebozoa, which use pseudopodial movement to navigate aquatic or moist environments and to ingest prey. In multicellular organisms, several immune cells—most notably macrophages and neutrophils—exhibit amoeboid movement, enabling rapid navigation through tissues during immune responses. Some cancer cells can adopt an amoeboid mode of migration, particularly in confined or densely packed matrices, as part of invasive behavior.

Amoeboid movement is often contrasted with other forms of motility, such as flagellar, ciliary, or mesenchymal migration. The term is commonly used descriptively in cell biology, microbiology, and pathology rather than as a formal taxonomic category.

See also: amoebae, pseudopodia, leukocyte migration, cell motility.