Skip to main content
Log in

Responses of the photosynthetic flagellate, Euglena gracilis, to hypergravity

  • Published:
European Biophysics Journal Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Motility and orientation has been studied in the unicellular photosynthetic flagellate, Euglena gracilis, using real time image analysis capable of tracking up to 200 cells simultaneously in the slow rotating centrifuge microscope (NIZEMI) which allows one to observe the cells' swimming behavior during centrifugation accelerations between 1 g and 5 g. At 1 g the cells show a weak negative gravitaxis, which increases significantly at higher accelerations up to about 3 g. Though most cells were capable of swimming even against an acceleration of 4.5 g, the degree of gravitaxis decreased and some of the cells were passively moved downward by the acceleration force; this is true for most cells at 5 g. The velocity of cells swimming against 1 g is about 10% lower than that of cells swimming in other directions. The velocity decreases even more drastically in cells swimming against higher acceleration forces than those at 1 g. The degree of gravitactic orientation drastically decreases after short exposure to artificial UV radiation which indicates that gravitaxis may be due to an active physiological perception rather than a physical effect such as an asymmetry of the center of gravity within the cell.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Aderhold R (1888) Beiträge zur Kenntnis richtender Kräfte bei der Bewegung niederer Organismen. Jenaische Z Med Naturwiss 22: 311–342

    Google Scholar 

  • Batschelet E (1981) Circular statistics in biology. Academic Press, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Bean B (1984) Microbial geotaxis. In: Colombetti G, Lenci F (eds) Membranes and sensory transduction. Plenum Press, New York London, pp 163–198

    Google Scholar 

  • Brinkmann K (1968) Keine Geotaxis bei Euglena. Z Pflanzenphysiol 59: 12–16

    Google Scholar 

  • Checcucci A, Colombetti G, Ferrara R, Lenci F (1976) Action spectra for photoaccumulation of green and colorless Euglena: evidence for identification of receptor pigments. Photochem Photobiol 23: 51–54

    Google Scholar 

  • Colombetti G, Hader D-P, Lenci F, Quaglia M (1982) Phototaxis in Euglena gracilis: effect of sodium azide and triphenylmethyl phosphonium ion on the photosensory transduction chain. Curr Microbiol 7: 281–284

    Google Scholar 

  • Creutz C, Diehn B (1976) Motor responses to polarized light and gravity sensing in Euglena gracilis. J Protozool 23: 552–556

    Google Scholar 

  • Doughty MJ, Diehn B (1983) Photosensory transduction in the flagellated alga, Euglena gracilis. IV. Long term effects of ions and pH on the expression of step-down photobehavior. Arch Microbiol 134: 204–207

    Google Scholar 

  • Ekelund N, Häder D-P (1988) Photomovement and photobleaching in two Gyrodinium species. Plant Cell Physiol 29: 1109–1114

    Google Scholar 

  • Esquivel DMS, de Barros HGPL (1986) Motion of magnetotactic microorganisms. J Exp Biol 121: 153–163

    Google Scholar 

  • Fenchel T, Finlay BJ (1986) Photobehavior of the ciliated protozoon Loxodes, taxic, transient, and kinetic responses in the presence and absence of oxygen. J Protozool 33: 139–145

    Google Scholar 

  • Freeman H (1961) On the encoding of arbitrary geometric configurations. IRE Trans EC-10: 260–268

    Google Scholar 

  • Freeman H (1980) Analysis and manipulation of lineal map data. Map data processing. Academic Press, New York, pp 151–168

    Google Scholar 

  • Fukui K, Asai H (1985) Negative geotactic behavior of Paramecium caudatum is completely described by the mechanism of buoyancy-oriented upward swimming. Biophys J 47: 479–482

    Google Scholar 

  • Häder D-P (1984) Effects of UV-B on motility and photoorientation in the cyanobacteriurn, Phormidium uncinatum. Arch Microbiol 140: 34–39

    Google Scholar 

  • Häder D-P (1985) Photomovement in Cyanophora paradoxa. Arch Microbiol 143: 100–104

    Google Scholar 

  • Häder D-P (1986) Effects of solar and artificial UV irradiation on motility and phototaxis in the flagellate, Euglena gracilis. Photochem Photobiol 44: 651–656

    Google Scholar 

  • Häder D-P (1987 a) Polarotaxis, gravitaxis and vertical phototaxis in the green flagellate, Euglena gracilis. Arch Microbiol 147: 179–183

    Google Scholar 

  • Häder D-P (1987 b) Effects of UV-B irradiation on photomovement in the desmid, Cosmarium cucumis. Photochem Photobiol 46: 121–126

    Google Scholar 

  • Häder D-P (1988) Computer-assisted image analysis in biological sciences. Proc Ind Acad Sci (Plant Sci) 98: 227–249

    Google Scholar 

  • Häder D-P, Griebenow K (1988) Orientation of the green flagellate, Euglena gracilis, in a vertical column of water. FEMS Microbiol Ecol 53: 159–167

    Google Scholar 

  • Häder D-P, Häder MA (1988) Inhibition of motility and phototaxis in the green flagellate, Euglena gracilis, by UV-B radiation. Arch Microbiol 150: 20–25

    Google Scholar 

  • Häder D-P, Häder MA (1989) Effects of solar UV-B irradiation on photomovement and motility in photosynthetic and colorless flagellates. Environ Exp Bot 29: 273–282

    Google Scholar 

  • Häder D-P, Lipson E (1986) Fourier analysis of angular distributions for motile microorganisms. Photochem Photobiol 44: 657–663

    Google Scholar 

  • Häder D-P, Vogel K (1990) Simultaneous tracking of flagellates in real time by image analysis. J Math Biol (accepted for publication)

  • Häder D-P, Colombetti G, Lenci F, Quaglia M (1981) Phototaxis in the flagellates, Euglena gracilis and Ochromonas danica. Arch Microbiol 130: 78–82

    Google Scholar 

  • Häder D-P, Watanabe M, Furuya M (1986) Inhibition of motility in the cyanobacterium, Phormidium uncinatum, by solar and monochromatic UV irradiation. Plant Cell Physiol 27: 887–894

    Google Scholar 

  • Häder D-P, Rhiel E, Wehrmeyer W (1987) Phototaxis in the marine flagellate Cryptomonas maculata. J Photochem Photobiol 1: 115–122

    Google Scholar 

  • Häder D-P, Vogel K, Schäfer J (1990) Responses of the photosynthetic flagellate, Euglena gracilis, to microgravity. Micrograv Sci Technol 3: 110–116

    Google Scholar 

  • Kessler JO (1986) The external dynamics of swimming microorganisms. In: Round FE, Chapman DJ (eds) Progress in physiological research. Biopress, Oxford, pp 258–307

    Google Scholar 

  • Kuroda K, Kamiya NMJA, Yoshimoto Y, Hiramoto Y (1986) Paramecium behavior during video centrifuge-microscopy. Proc Jpn Acad Ser B 62: 117–121

    Google Scholar 

  • Lenci F, Colombetti G, Häder D-P (1983) Role of flavin quenchers and inhibitors in the sensory transduction of the negative phototaxis in the flagellate, Euglena gracilis. Current Microbiol 9: 285–290

    Google Scholar 

  • MacNab RM (1985) Biochemistry of sensory transduction in bacteria. In: Colombetti G, Lenci F, Song P-S (eds) Sensory perception and transduction in aneural organisms. Plenum Press, New York London, pp 31–46

    Google Scholar 

  • Mardia KV (1972) Statistics of directional data. Academic Press, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Mast SO (1911) Light and behavior of organisms. Wiley, New York/Chapman & Hall, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Nultsch W, Agel G (1986) Fluence rate and wavelength dependence of photobleaching in the cyanobacterium Anabaena variabilis. Arch Microbiol 144: 268–271

    Google Scholar 

  • Nultsch W, Häder D-P (1988) Photomovement in motile micro-organisms II. Photochem Photobiol 47: 837–869

    Google Scholar 

  • Poff KL (1985) Temperature sensing in microorganisms. In: Colombetti G, Lenci F, Song P-S (eds) Sensory perception and transduction in aneural organisms. Plenum Press, New York London, pp 299–307

    Google Scholar 

  • Rhiel E, Häder D-P, Wehrmeyer W (1988) Diaphototaxis and gravitaxis in a freshwater Cryptomonas. Plant Cell Physiol 29: 755–760

    Google Scholar 

  • Roberts AM (1970) Geotaxis in motile micro-organisms. J Exp Biol 53: 687–699

    Google Scholar 

  • Shimmen T (1981) Quantitative studies on step-down photophobic response of Euglena in an individual cell. Protoplasma 106: 37–48

    Google Scholar 

  • Taneda K (1987) Geotactic behavior in Paramecium caudatum. I. Geotaxis assay of individual specimen. Zool Sci 4: 781–788

    Google Scholar 

  • Taneda K, Miyata S, Shiota A (1987) Geotactic behavior in Paramecium caudatum. II. Geotaxis assay in a population of the specimens. Zool Sci 4: 789–795

    Google Scholar 

  • Verworn M (1889) Die polare Erregung der Protisten durch den galvanischen Strom. Pflügers Arch Physiol 45: 1–36

    Google Scholar 

  • Winet H, Jahn TL (1974) Geotaxis in protozoa: I. A propulsion-gravity model for Tetrahymena (Ciliata) J Theor Biol 46: 449–455

    Google Scholar 

  • Wolken JJ, Shin E (1958) Photomotion in Euglena gracilis. Photokinesis. II. Phototaxis J Protozool 5: 39–46

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Additional information

Offprint requests to: D.-P. Häder

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Häder, D.P., Reinecke, E., Vogel, K. et al. Responses of the photosynthetic flagellate, Euglena gracilis, to hypergravity. Eur Biophys J 20, 101–107 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00186258

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00186258

Key words

Navigation