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Endosymbionts of Killer Paramecia

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Paramecium

Abstract

Killer paramecia were first reported by T.M. Sonneborn (1938). Subsequently, he determined that the genetic determinants for the killer trait were located in the cytoplasm and concluded that they were cytoplasmic genes which he referred to as “plasmagenes” (Sonneborn 1943). However, studies conducted by Preer and others demonstrated that Paramecium killer traits were actually determined by bacterial endosymbionts residing in the cytoplasms of killer paramecia (Preer et al. 1974). Several excellent reviews on the bacterial endosymbionts of paramecia have been published (Gibson 1974; Preer et al. 1974; Soldo 1974). The purpose of this chapter is to provide an update to those reviews with respect to the endosymbionts of killer paramecia.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Microbiology, University of South Dakota, Vermillion, SD, 57069, USA

    Robert L. Quackenbush

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  1. Robert L. Quackenbush
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Zoologisches Institut der Universität Münster, Schloßplatz 5, 4400, Münster, Germany

    Hans-Dieter Görtz

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© 1998 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Quackenbush, R.L. (1998). Endosymbionts of Killer Paramecia. In: Görtz, HD. (eds) Paramecium. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-73086-3_23

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-73086-3_23

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-73088-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-73086-3

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