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Abstract
Respiration of Acanthamoeba castellanii shows varying sensitivity to cyanide during exponential growth in a medium containing proteose peptone, glucose and yeast extract. After 20 h growth, respiration was stimulated up to 40% by 1 mm-cyanide; sensitivity to cyanide then gradually increased until 90% inhibition of respiration was attained in late-exponential phase cultures. Salicyl hydroxamic acid alone never stimulated or inhibited respiration by more than 20% but, when added together with cyanide, inhibition was always 70 to 100% from 3h onward. Sensitivity to antimycin A was similar, but not identical to that shown to cyanide; when antimycin A was added together with salicyl hydroxamic acid, the inhibition was greater. Increased sensitivities to arsenite and malonate were also observed in late-exponential phase cultures. These changes in sensitivities were not associated with alterations in the growth medium since similar changes in sensitivity to inhibitors were observed during growth in conditioned medium. A rotenone-sensitive site is associated with cyanide-stimulated respiration and the results suggest that A. castellanii possesses a branched electron transport system.
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