Thermosensing of Thermotactic Mutants, Dictyostelium discoideum Amoebae in Vegetative Stage

Temperature response of amoebae of thermotactic mutants have been investigated. Amoebae of the mutant strain HO 428 showed positive thermotaxs which is strong at lower temperaturs and drops sharply above the growth temperature of amoebae. The temperature response of HO 428 amoebae was not affected by the length of amoebae on the grdients. HO 596 amoebae seemed to have both positive and negative thermotactic responses shortly after food depletion. Longer exposure of these amoebae on the thermal gradients induced a stronger negative response at lower temperatures and an apparent positive response at higher temperatures. A similar changes could be observed in HO 1445 amoebae. Based on the steady positive thermotactic response by HO 428 amoebae and the mode of change in termperature response at higher temperatures, 24$^{\circ}C$ and $25^{\circ}C$, by HO 596 amoebae, a model for the temperature response of vegetative Dictyostelium discoideum amoebae, strain HL 50, has been proposed. The main features of the model are: a positive response at the thermal gradients with midpoint temperatures lower than the growth temperatures of amoebae and a negative response above it.