Abstract
In the vegetative state, Dictyostelium amoebae are chemotactic toward pterins released by bacteria, whereas during multicellular development, they become chemotactic to endogenously produced cAMP. A variety of assays have been used to visualize and quantify chemotactic movement. Under-agarose chemotaxis provides a simple and flexible assay that permits high-resolution imaging and quantification of the motility behavior of individual cells and populations by both transmitted light and fluorescence microscopy. The assay requires cells to deform a solid but flexible matrix; therefore, it also provides a way to measure defects in the ability of mutant cells to move in these restrictive conditions.
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Woznica, D., Knecht, D.A. (2006). Under-Agarose Chemotaxis of Dictyostelium discoideum . In: Eichinger, L., Rivero, F. (eds) Dictyostelium discoideum Protocols. Methods in Molecular Biology™, vol 346. Humana Press. https://doi.org/10.1385/1-59745-144-4:311
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1385/1-59745-144-4:311
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