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News Release 11-263
Close Family Ties Keep Microbial Cheaters in Check, Study Finds
Experiments on "slime mold" explain why almost all multicellular organisms begin life as a single cell
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The social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum is the subject of a new study of evolution.
Credit: Owen Gilbert
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Rotting logs on the forest floor are among Dicty's favorite habitats.
Credit: State of Washington
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Dicty's basic life cycle is that of a social amoeba.
Credit: Wikipedia
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Dicty preys on bacteria in soil. When Dicty starves, it forms a multicellular body.
Credit: Scott Solomon
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Some 20% of Dicty cells at times support 80% of spores.
Credit: David Brown and Joan Strassmann
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The researchers' work is described in the December 16, 2011 issue of the journal Science.
Credit: Copyright AAAS 2011
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