Towards testate amoebae genomics and beyond, a wish list…

Despite of the rapid advancements in genomic tools over the past decade, genomic data remains limited for many protists, with some taxonomic groups lacking it entirely. One such group is testate amoebae, a group of shelled amoeboid protists known to have a long fossil record. Indeed, for some of them (i.e., arcellinid testate amoebae) the evolutionary roots trace back approximately 730 million years. Beyond their fascinating evolutionary history, these organisms are highly valued for their diverse applications across various research fields, including paleoecology, environmental monitoring, ecotoxicology, microbial community ecology, endosymbiont studies, and more. Consequently, their genomic data harbors significant potential for yielding crucial insights within the contexts of evolution, ecology, and climate change, while also offering opportunities for exploration from both biotechnological and functional perspectives. This short communication gives an overview of possible research directions for testate amoebae based on molecular data and outlining innovative techniques that have the potential to elevate testate amoebae research to a new next level.