Chemosensory behaviour of Tetrahymena.
Free swimming cells of the ciliated protozoan Tetrahymena are attracted to certain chemicals by chemokinesis. However, a special type of chemotaxis in response to a chemical gradient is found in cells gliding very slowly in semisolid media. In contrast to classical chemotaxis by leukocytes, which is solely positive towards chemo-attractants, the oriented chemokinesis by gliding Tetrahymena involves both positive and negative elements. The major chemo-attractants are peptides and/or proteins, and they may be compounds which signal the presence of food in the natural environment of this freshwater phagotroph.
Leick
V
V
Department of Biochemistry B, University of Copenhagen, Denmark.
Hellung-Larsen
P
P
D000818:Animals; D002630:Chemotactic Factors / Q000494:pharmacology; D002633:Chemotaxis / Q000502:physiology*; D009240:N-Formylmethionine Leucyl-Phenylalanine / Q000494:pharmacology; D010247:Paramecium / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D010982:Platelet-Derived Growth Factor / Q000494:pharmacology; D013768:Tetrahymena / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*
D002630:Chemotactic Factors; D010982:Platelet-Derived Growth Factor; D009240:N-Formylmethionine Leucyl-Phenylalanine