抄録
The plasmodium of Physarum polycephalum is a unicellular and multinuclear giant amoeba. In the previous study, we have demonstrated that the velocity of the cell migration of the plasmodium in a one dimensional path is proportional to the length of its tubular structure. In this study, to investigate the mechanism of this phenomenon, we observed the changes in cytoplasmic streaming with the development of the tubular structure. As a result, we found that the flow rate and the amount of tolal flow of cytoplasmic streaming are dependent on the length of tubular structure. Namely, the result indicates that the cell migration of the plasmodium is promoted by the development of tubular structure, because the tubes reinforce the flow of cytoplasmic streaming and increase the amount of cytosol flows into and expands the pseudopods in the locomotive front.
