This is a review of over 400 published research papers on free-living, non-testate amoebae during the approximate last half century (1965-2017) particularly focusing on three topics: Biogeography, Ecology, and Physiology. These topics were identified because of the substantial attention given to them during the course of the last half century, and due to their potential importance in issues of local and global expanse, such as: aquatic and terrestrial stability of habitats, ecosystem processes, biogeochemistry and climate change, and the role of eukaryotic microbes generally in ecosystem services. Moreover, there are close epistemological and thematic ties among the three topics, making a synthesis of the published research more systematic and productive. The number of reviewed publications for each of the three individual topics is presented to illustrate the trends in publication frequencies during the historical period of analysis.  Overall, the number of total publications reviewed varied somewhat between 1965 and early 2000 (generally less than 10 per year), but increased to well over 10 per year after 2000. The number of Biogeography and Ecology studies identified in the online citations increased substantially after the mid 1990s, while studies focusing on Physiology were relatively more abundant in the first decade (1965-1974) and less were identified in the 1985 to 2004 period. Citations to the literature are listed in tables for each of the three topics for convenience in retrieving references to specific aspects, and representative examples of the cited research in the tables are reviewed in the text under subheads dedicated to each of the three topics. Biogeographic studies largely focused on the geographic distribution and localized patterns of occurrence of amoebae, with more recent studies incorporating more attention to likely correlates with environmental and biotic factors in the distribution and community composition of amoebae. Ecological studies reviewed in the later decades tended to focus more on community dynamics, the effects of environmental variables on communities (including climate-related topics), a trend toward more physiological ecology studies, combined field-based and experimental studies, and incorporation of newer methodologies such as molecular genetics. In general, physiology studies in the first decades of the review tended to focus on topics of cell physiology such as basic biochemistry, enzyme assays, mechanisms of cell division and development, encystment, and motility. Later studies examined broader topics such as osmoregulation, nutrition, fine structure evidence of cellular changes during the life cycle (including encystment and excystment), and issues related to asexual and sexual reproduction, with increasing substantial evidence of evolutionary patterns and phylogenetics based on molecular evidence.  A final section on Conclusions and Recommendations summarizes the findings and presents some potentially productive approaches to future research studies on Amoebozoa within the three designated topics of analysis.

iardia duodenalisis one of the six Giardia species and itis the most common, cosmopolitan flagellate that infects humans and many species of animals.This species exhibits considerable genetic diversity; to date, eight assemblages (A–H) have been defined. These assemblages differ in host specificity: assemblages A and B have beenfound in both humans and in many animal species. Mixed infections with Giardia (A and B) assemblages have been reported in humans and in animals. Many molecular techniques are effective and rapid for the detection of G. duodenalis and also forthe determination of genetic variability of isolates in clinical and environmental samples. In this context, the aim of this study was to design new assemblage-specific primers for rapid detection and identification ofG. duodenalis assemblages A and B and both of these assemblages simultaneously using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). Fragments of glutamate dehydrogenase and triose phosphate isomerase were used as targets in the design of primers.
In conclusion, the use of G. duodenalis assemblage-specific primers designed in this study allows quick identification of human infectious G. duodenalis assemblages A and B as well as mixed AB assemblages in a sample without further sequencing of the amplification products, which reduces the cost of study and the waiting time for the results.

Microsporidia infection rate in Ostrinia nubilalis larvae collected in Russia in 2011-2016 ranged from 0 to 16 %. Totally, among 262 examined insects, there were as many as 13 infected specimens, resulting in average prevalence of 5 % over the period indicated. In all positive samples but one diplokaryotic spores 4 um long were observed corresponding to diagnosis of Nosema pyrausta. Nevertheless, in one case (i.e. 0.4 %) the infected larva contained monokaryotic spores about 2 um long. After experimental infection of a substitute host Ostrinia furnacalis with monokaryotic spores only Nosema-like spores were observed in laboratory assays. Ribosomal RNA and RPB1 gene portions were 100 % identical in samples of both mono- and diplokaryotic spores. This observation shows that Nosema pyrausta can form uninucleate spores under yet to be described conditions in nature and that molecular genetic analysis is essential for correct species identification. 

Phlebotomine sandflies were tested as potential vectors of avian trypanosomes (Kinetoplastea: Trypanosomatidae). Lutzomyia longipalpis and Phlebotomus arabicus took bloodmeals with cultured Trypanosoma avium parasites; mature infections with stages transmissible to canaries (Serinus canaria) developed in the sandflies. The infection rates ranged between 66 and 89%, with heavy infections in 24 - 78% fed females. L. longipalpis that fed on infected birds were also infected, and some developed mature infections (37 and 19%, resp). On the contrary, Lutzomyia longipalpis and Phlebotomus arabicus were not susceptible to infection with  trypanosomes from T. bennetti clade. Our results, together with the previous findings of naturally infected L. caballeroi, suggest that sandflies could serve as vectors of avian trypanosomes from the T. avium clade.

In our study, we aimed to identify and quantify the intestinal ciliates in a Brazilian capybara and to compare the obtained data with previous studies on the capybara ciliate community in other geographic locations within the American continent. We identified 20 species belonging to four families and ten genera. This is the first study on intestinal ciliates in Brazilian capybara since the last reports for the country in the 1960s. Among the identified species, Anacharon gracilis, A. lepturus, Cycloposthium bursa, Monoposthium cynodontum, Ogimotopsis pumila, Paracunhamunizia calocoma, Protohallia nana and Uropogon urai were recorded for the first time in Brazil, and the giant ciliate Muniziella cunhai was observed for the second time in a symbiotic association with capybaras in the country. The present study highlighted the importance of knowing the gastrointestinal ciliate community associated with wild hosts in order to better understand their geographic distribution and host specificity.