Intermediate filaments include a group of proteins primarily involved in structural support as opposed to other cytoskeletal proteins that have specialized functions. Intermediate filaments are organized into different classes due to their variety. Intermediate filaments are found in most Opisthokonts, a supergroup related to the Amoebozoa super group. Amoeba are classified as pseudopods. They maneuver by extending parts of their bodies. In humans, a member of the Opisthokonts, intermediate filaments and their functionality along with mutations and other variations are very well documented however, the same cannot be said for Amoeba, which is the objective of this research. Recent studies have reported that some intermediate filaments may be found in Amoebozoa. In order to determine which proteins are present or absent, eleven amoebozoa genomes were compared with protein sequences of humans. An inventory was created by running a Python script to organize the results in a table. Desmin, a common intermediate filament found in many animals for example, was only seen in three of the eleven Amoeba genomes. Because intermediate filaments are so vast, this research can be used to further develop other experiments for the other proteins found in humans to determine how closely related they are to amoebas.
