Discosea is aclass ofAmoebozoa, consisting of naked amoebae with a flattened, discoid body shape.[1] Members of the group do not produce tubular orsubcylindricalpseudopodia, like amoebae of the classTubulinea. When a discosean is in motion, a transparent layer calledhyaloplasm forms at the leading edge of the cell (seelamellipodium). In some discoseans, short "subpseudopodia" may be extended from this hyaloplasm, but the granular contents of the cell do not flow into these, as in true pseudopodia. Discosean amoebae lack hard shells, but some, likeCochliopodium andKorotnevella secrete intricate organic scales which may cover the upper (dorsal) surface of the cell. No species have flagella or flagellated stages of life.[3][4]
The composition of Discosea is similar to that of the class Flabellinea, proposed by Alexey Smirnov and his collaborators in 2005.[5] However, Discosea is a more comprehensivetaxon, including several groups not included in Flabellinea.[6] In 2011, Smirnov et al. accepted Discosea as a class, and reduced Flabellinea to the rank of a subclass with the nameFlabellinia.[3]
^abCavalier-Smith, Thomas; Chao, Ema E. -Y.; Oates, Brian (2004-05-18). "Molecular phylogeny of Amoebozoa and the evolutionary significance of the unikont Phalansterium".European Journal of Protistology.40 (1):21–48.doi:10.1016/j.ejop.2003.10.001.
