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The intracellular ATP concentration in plasmodia of the myxomycete Physarum polycephalum was determined by the luciferin-luciferase method after stimulation with various chemotactic chemicals. Repellent salts induced an ATP increase. The change in ATP concentration paralleled changes in contraction and in electrical potential with respect to both time course and concentration dependence. Other repellents (certain organic chemicals and high osmolarity) did not induce appreciable change in ATP concentration within 15 min, but prolonged treatment with hydrophobic repellents and D2O led to diminished ATP. None of the attractants examined (e.g. glucose, alanine, KH2PO4 and 2-deoxyglucose) changed the ATP concentration. A possible role of ATP as a mediator in response to salts is discussed.
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