Social amoebae travel with a posse
Monday, July 29, 2013 - 22:20
in Biology & Nature
Some social amoebae farm the bacteria they eat. Now scientists have taken a closer look at one lineage, or clone, of D. discoideum farmer. This farmer carries not one but two strains of bacteria. One strain is the "seed corn" for a crop of edible bacteria, and the other strain is a weapon that produces defensive chemicals. The edible bacteria, the scientists found, evolved from the toxic one.