Ammonia Determines the Alternative Pathways of Sexual or Asexual Development in the Cellular Slime Mold Dictyostelium discoideum: (Dictyostelium discoideum/cell fusion/developmental pathways/ammonia effect/sexual development).

The sexual development, macrocyst formation, of Dictyostelium discoideum is initiated by sexual fusion of cells. The sexual fusion is only taken place under the culture conditions of excess water and darkness. Under these conditions, cells acquire the fusion competence, but lose it when cell density is high. The loss of the fusion competence is caused by accumulation of ammonia excreted by cells in a culture. Ammonia suppresses the fusion competence of cells at a certain concentration, and consequently inhibits formation of macrocysts and induces fruiting-body formation. Thus, excess water induces the sexual development by diluting ammonia and lack of water induces the asexual development.