title: Behavioral studies into the mechanism of eukaryotic chemotaxis.
abstract: Recent behavioral studies designed to elucidate the mechanism of chemotaxis to cAMP in the eukaroyteDictyostelium discoideum are reviewed. In these studies, ambae were analyzed by the newly developed, computer-assisted dynamic morphology system while (1) chemotaxing in a spatial gradient of cAMP, (2) responding to repeated temporal waves of cAMP in the absence of a spatial gradient in a Sykes-Moore chamber, and (3) responding to rapid shifts in cAMP concentration. It is demonstrated that eukaryotic amebae do indeed have the capacity to assess the direction of a temporal gradient, which indicates that they must have a "memory" system for this purpose. It is also demonstrated that amebae regulate behavior in spatial and temporal gradients of chemoattractant through changes in: (1) velocity; (2) frequency of pseudopod formation; and (3) frequency of turning. Analogies to the bacterial system are apparent.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, University of Iowa, 52242, Iowa City, Iowa.
authors.forename: D R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Soll