cellular slime mold

2 definitions found

cellular slime mold - Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 :

  slime mold \slime mold\, slime mould \slime mould\n.
     1. An unusual fungus-like protist of the phylum Myxomycota or
        the class Myxomycetes, having a stage of growth in which
        it comprises a naked noncellular multinucleate mass of
        creeping protoplasm having characteristics of both plants
        and animals; it also has a propagative phase in which it
        develops fruiting bodies bearing spores; it is sometimes
        classified as a protist. It is called also acellular  slime mold
        . [WordNet 1.5 +PJC]
  
     2. Any of several remarkable amoebalike organisms of the
        phylum Acrasiomycota, mostly terrestrial, having a
        fruiting phase resembling that of the acellular slime  molds
        , but being cellular and nucleate throughout their
        life cycle; called also cellular slime mold. The most
        studied species is Dictyostelium discoideum. In their
        feeding phase, they live like amoebae as individual cells,
        engulfing bacteria as a prime food source. When the food
        source diminishes, they begin to aggregate, swarming
        together to form clumps which may move toward heat and
        light, so as to reach the surface of the ground; they then
        differentiate into a form with spores contained within a
        sporangium resting on a stalk. When the spores are carried
        to another location with adequate food supplies, the
        spores may germinate to resume the life cycle. The phase
        of aggregation appears to be initiated by release of
        cyclic AMP, serving as a signal between the individual
        cells. The formation of the fruiting body has some
        similarities to differentiation in multicellular
        organisms, but the mechanisms are still under study. Some
        biologists object to the classification of Dictyostelium
        as a slime mold, as it is neither a mold nor slimy.
        [PJC]

cellular slime mold - WordNet (r) 2.1 (2005) :

  cellular slime mold
      n 1: differing from true slime molds in being cellular and
           nucleate throughout the life cycle