Dictyosteliomycota
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Dictyosteliomycetes |
Dictyosteliomycota is a phylum of the Kingdom Amoebozoa related to protists.
The name dictyosteliomycota comes from the Greek: dictyo= "net-like", stelio="pillar"
Some would also consider Dictyosteliomycota as a kingdom unto itself, but the debate is as of yet unsettled due to conflicts between EF1-alpha and developmental phylogenetics.
[edit] Reproduction
When resources, such as water or food become limiting, the amoeba will release pheromones such as acrasin to aggregate amoebal cells in preparation for movement as a large (thousands of cells) grex or "slug".
The large blob-like mass of amoebae glides along on its own secretions, engulfing bacteria, fungi, and decaying organic matter for food.
When it reaches a location it finds suitable, the cells will pile upon each other to form a pillar of cells (sorocarp), eventually dessicating and forming with each being able to sporulate (produce spores), with the choice position for dispersal being on top, where air currents are most favorable.
Spores germinate into more amoebae, (myxamoeba), which can asexually reproduce mitotically.
Amoeba can further undergo plasmogamy to create a diploid macrocyst that is resistant to dessication, heat, and low levels of resources. When conditions become favorable, the macrocyst will undergo meiosis and recombination to create 1N amoebae.
All stages are 1N in ploidy, excepting for the short-lived Macrocyst stage.
[edit] See Also
[edit] References
- C.J. Alexopolous, Charles W. Mims, M. Blackwell et. al., Introductory Mycology, 4th ed. (John Wiley and Sons, Hoboken NJ, 2004) ISBN: 0-471-52229-5
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