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The Relation of Concanavalin A Receptor Distribution to the Conjugation Process in Tetrahymena thermophila
Author(s) -
WATANABE S.,
TOYOHARA A.,
SUZAKI T.,
SHIGENAKA Y.
Publication year - 1981
Publication title -
the journal of protozoology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.067
H-Index - 77
eISSN - 1550-7408
pISSN - 0022-3921
DOI - 10.1111/j.1550-7408.1981.tb02828.x
Subject(s) - tetrahymena , cycloheximide , concanavalin a , fluorescence , fluorescein isothiocyanate , biology , biophysics , cell , microbiology and biotechnology , chemistry , biochemistry , optics , protein biosynthesis , in vitro , physics
By using fluorescent isothiocyanate‐conjugated concanavalin A (FITC‐Con A), cell surface events were examined under a light microscope during the early period of the conjugation process in Tetrahymena thermophila . Until the two complementary mating types (D‐III and IV) were mixed, Con A‐binding activities were hardly detected on the cell surface of ciliates. After mixing, however, the FITC‐Con A (25 μg/ml) bound especially to the anterior cell surface at the early stage of conjugation, followed by characteristic changes of the Con A‐binding pattern and, subsequently, by formation of a bright fluorescent ring around the area of contact between conjugants. Such alterations of FITC‐Con A‐binding pattern were found to be interrupted or eliminated by cycloheximide (2 μg/ml). These findings are related to the onset and subsequent conjugation in T. thermophila .