Difference Between Amoeba and Paramecium

Main Difference

The main difference between Amoeba and Paramecium is that Amoeba is an irregular-shaped protozoan that moves with the help of pseudopodia, whereas, Paramecium is an oval-shaped protozoan that moves with the help of thin hair-like structures known as cilia.

Amoeba vs. Paramecium

Amoeba is unicellular protozoans that move with the help of pseudopodia on the outer surface of the cells. However, Paramecium is the unicellular protozoans that move with the help of thin hair-like structures that are known as cilia. Amoeba feeds with the help of its outer structure pseudopodia, whereas, Paramecium feeds on its hosts with the help of cilia.

Amoeba can only be found in freshwaters or wet soil as parasites, whereas, Paramecium is found in freshwater or in decaying matters that act as the host for them. Amoeba is known to have irregular and unmaintained shape, whereas, Paramecium has regular oval type shape. Amoeba benefits the irregular shape and body structure to change its shape as it moves, while Paramecium lacks in this aspect and cannot change its structure.

Amoeba does not possess a distinct anterior end as it does not have a regular shaped fixed boundary, whereas, Paramecium has a distinct anterior end due to a fixed boundary and regular shape. Amoeba does not contain an oral groove, cystome, or a specific point for entry of food, whereas Paramecium contains an oral groove and cystome through which food enters.

Amoeba does not contain any anal pore for excretion of waste, whereas Paramecium contains an oral groove and also contains an anal pore, which helps them in the excretion of wastes out of the body. Amoeba contains only one nucleus in their structure, whereas, Paramecium contains two nuclei in their structures, the bigger one is known as macronucleus, and the smaller one is known as the micronucleus.

Amoeba for their reproduction only goes through the asexual process of binary fission where one parent cell divides into two daughter cells; however, Paramecium can undergo sexual as well as an asexual mode of reproduction, as asexual in binary fission and sexually by conjugation.

Comparison Chart

What is Amoeba?

Amoeba is the unicellular eukaryotic that live in freshwater ponds or wet soils. They also act as parasites while living in human and animal bodies. These protozoans have outgrown structures that are known as pseudopodia. These pseudopodia help them in relocation as well as in other routine activities. These pseudopodia are also known as false feet.

These pseudopodia help them in engulfing the food surrounding their wall structure. This process of engulfing the food by using pseudopodia is also known as phagocytosis. This process later also helps in the ejaculation of wastes. The excretory process is known as exocytosis in amoeba.

Amoeba propagates by forwarding its cytoplasm in the direction it wants to move. As pseudopodium forms with movement in the cytoplasm that leads to very slow movement. This movement of amoeba is also known as an amoeboid movement.

Due to this movement and lack of rigidity in structure, the amoeba is known to have irregular and unmaintained shapes. Amoeba benefits from this irregular shape and body structure to change its shape as it propagates. It also does not possess a distinct anterior end due to irregular shaped and un-fixed boundaries.

Amoeba contains a membrane-bounded fixed shape nucleus. This membrane separates cytoplasm from nucleoplasm, along with food vacuoles and contractile vacuoles in its single-celled structure. Amoeba, unlike paramecium, does not contain an oral groove, cystome, or a specific point for entry of food.

It also does not contain any anal pore for excretion of waste, however, food after absorption enters inside a vacuole, and after complete digestion, this food eliminates through exocytosis. Amoeba for their reproduction only goes through the asexual process as in binary fission, where one parent cell divides into two daughter cells.

This binary fission occurs under favorable conditions, whereas, asexually, the amoeba can also undergo spore formation. This spore formation only takes place under dry conditions. As during dry conditions or insufficient food supply, this method is adopted; thus, spores are present inside the structure, and under favorable conditions, these spores are germinated in the environment, thus completing the process.

What is Paramecium?

Paramecium is the unicellular eukaryotic protozoans that live in freshwater or decaying organic matter with a shape like a slipper and a length of 0.3mm. Paramecium contains hair-like structures surrounding its body. These cilia help them in relocation as well as engulfing food particles.

The body of a paramecium is under cover of the pellicle of three membranes that enable them to maintain their structure. The cilia are present on these pellicles. The two inner membranes are folded inside to form alveoli. These alveoli are large vesicles and are present at the base of cilia. These cilia enable them to show spiral movement as these cilia are around the axis of the body.

Currents in these cilia also enable them to move food into the funnel known as the gullet, which is then later taken up by vacuoles for digestion. The distinctive mouth region here is known as cystome. Unlike amoeba, they have a proper oral region and anal pore. This anal pore also enables them to excrete wastes out of the body.

Due to the three-layered structures of the pellicle, a distinct anterior end of a paramecium is visible. Paramecium can also contain two nuclei in their structures, the bigger one is known as the macronucleus, and the smaller one is known as the micronucleus.

Paramecium can undergo sexual as well as the asexual mode of reproduction, asexual in binary fission and sexually by conjugation. Under favorable conditions, they undergo the same way of reproduction as amoeba, i.e. asexually by binary fission. However, in extreme conditions, they undergo sexual reproduction by conjugation. They are also sensitive to touch, light and chemicals, etc.

Key Differences

Conclusion

Amoeba is the protozoans that have an irregular shape with no distinct anterior ends and use pseudopodia to relocate themselves, whereas, Paramecium is the protozoans that have a regular oval-shaped structure with distinct anterior ends and use hair-like structures known as cilia for movement.

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