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Abstract
A mutant (dev-1515), which forms either spores or stalk cells depending on the cultural conditions, was isolated from dev-1510, a mutant of Dictyostelium discoideum NC-4. When grown with Escherichia coli on a nutrient-rich medium, dev-1515 formed a hemispherical cell mass in which most cells differentiated into spores. Culture with E. coli on a nutrient-intermediate medium inhibited amoebae from aggregating normally and they differentiated into stalk cells only. Development of washed vegetative cells of the mutant proceeded further without bacteria on either medium. Cells cultured in a roller tube were profoundly affected by the ionic strength of the medium. Almost all the cells in an agglutinate differentiated into stalk cells in a medium of low ionic strength, while most cells differentiated into spores in a medium of high ionic strength.
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