''Dictyostelium discoideum'' is a species of soil-dwelling amoeba belonging to the phylum

Amoebozoa Amoebozoa is a major taxonomic group containing about 2,400 described species of amoeboid protists, often possessing blunt, fingerlike, lobose pseudopods and tubular mitochondrial cristae. In traditional and currently no longer supported classi ...

, infraphylum Mycetozoa. Commonly referred to as slime mold, ''D. discoideum'' is a

eukaryote Eukaryotes () are organisms whose cells have a nucleus. All animals, plants, fungi, and many unicellular organisms, are Eukaryotes. They belong to the group of organisms Eukaryota or Eukarya, which is one of the three domains of life. Bacte ...

that transitions from a collection of unicellular amoebae into a multicellular slug and then into a fruiting body within its lifetime. Its unique asexual lifecycle consists of four stages: vegetative, aggregation, migration, and culmination. The lifecycle of ''D. discoideum'' is relatively short, which allows for timely viewing of all stages. The cells involved in the lifecycle undergo movement, chemical signaling, and development, which are applicable to human cancer research. The simplicity of its lifecycle makes ''D. discoideum'' a valuable model organism to study genetic, cellular, and biochemical processes in other organisms.

Natural habitat and diet

In the wild, ''D. discoideum'' can be found in soil and moist leaf litter. Its primary diet consists of bacteria, such as '' Escherichia coli'', found in the soil and decaying organic matter.

Uninucleate {{Short pages monitor