Abstract
MORE than 50 years ago, Mast suggested that positive phototaxis of Euglena is mediated by the shading action of the eyespot with respect to a “photoreceptor” situated near the base of the flagellum1. With the availability of a quantitative and reproducible method for measuring the rate of phototaxis2, this hypothesis has recently been given support by Tollin and myself3,4. We concluded that negative phototaxis occurs when the photoreceptor is not shaded from intense stimulating light. Bound and Tollin, using polarized actinic light, have shown that the pigment molecules in the eyespot are aligned with their long axes parallel to the long axis of the organism5.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Mast, S. O., Light and the Behavior of Organisms, 109 (Wiley, New York, 1911).
Lindes, D., Diehn, B., and Tollin, G., Rev. Sci. Instrum., 36, 1721 (1966).
Diehn, B., and Tollin, G., Photochem. Photobiol., 5, 523 (1966).
Diehn, B. (in the press, 1969).
Bound, K. E., and Tollin, G., Nature, 216, 1043 (1967).
Weedon, B. C. L., in Chemistry and Biochemistry of Plant Pigments (edit. by Goodwin, T. W.), 90 (Academic Press, London and New York, 1965).
Batra, P. P., and Tollin, G., Biochim. Biophys. Acta, 79, 371 (1964).
Jurd, L., in The Chemistry of Flavonoid Compounds (edit. by Geissmann, T. A.), 107 (Pergamon, New York, 1962).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
DIEHN, B. Two Perpendicularly Oriented Pigment Systems involved in Phototaxis of Euglena. Nature 221, 366–367 (1969). https://doi.org/10.1038/221366a0
Received:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/221366a0
This article is cited by
-
Molecular sensory physiology ofEuglena
Die Naturwissenschaften (1976)
-
Ausbildung von Maxima im Absorptionsspektrum von Carotinoiden im Bereich um 370 nm; Folgen f�r die Interpretation bestimmter Wirkungsspektren
Planta (1970)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.