The occurrence of nuclear fusion in the amoebal phase of the slime mold Echinostelium minutum: a reinterpretation of the significance of this phenomenon

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Nuclear fusion occurs in less than 1% of the myxamoebae of Echinostelium minutum de Bary, isolate D-3, sublines 1965 and 1971. Binucleate amoebae undergo synchronous mitosis, the two nuclei fuse, the fusion nucleus divides, cytokinesis occurs, and uninucleate daughter cells are formed. Failure to find a haploid–diploid alternance between the amoebal and plasmodial phases using Feulgen cytophotometry suggests that nuclear fusion is not a prerequisite for plasmodial formation in this isolate. Nuclear fusion may be one of the mechanisms which has led to the polyploid condition of the 1971 subline. This phenomenon may also represent a parasexual process.

This publication has 0 references indexed in Scilit: