Post-fusion incompatibility in Physarum polycephalum

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Abstract
The lethal reaction following fusion of plasmodia of a sensitive and a killer strain of Physarum polycephalum could be prevented by the incorporation of 5-bromo-2′-deoxyuridine in both strains. This result suggests the involvement of transcription in the lethal reaction. Although under appropriate conditions fusion of the strains is not followed by a lethal reaction the fused plasmodium will behave as the killer strain after subculturing. At different times after fusion, DNA was isolated from a plasmodium in which visible lethal reaction was prevented and separated on CsCl gradients. Killer DNA remained intact but sensitive DNA was broken down, mainly from 8–11 h after fusion.