Pseudoparamoeba microlepis n. sp., Korotnevella fousta n. sp. (Amoebozoa, Dactylopodida), with notes on the evolution of scales among dactylopodid amoebae.

The present paper describes two new species of lobose amoebae belonging to the family Paramoebidae within the order Dactylopodida: Pseudoparamoeba microlepis n. sp. and Korotnevella fousta n. sp. Among them, P. microlepis formally fits the diagnosis of the genus Korotnevella, because it has scales and lacks a parasome. At the same time its 18S rDNA gene sequence robustly groups with Pseudoparamoeba pagei and never branches among those of Korotnevella spp. Korotnevella fousta in 18S rDNA tree groups among other species of the genus Korotnevella. It has uniform scales with an elliptical basal plate and spine arising from its central part and surrounded by an "inverted skirt" structure. These findings show that the current differentiation between the genera Korotnevella and Pseudoparamoeba based on the presence of scales is not entirely valid. At the moment only molecular data can reliably differentiate these two genera.