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DNA amounts in the nuclei of Paramecium bursaria

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Abstract

DNA amounts in the macronuclei and micronuclei of syngen 4 of Paramecium bursaria were determined. There was a wide distribution of values for the amount of DNA in the macronucleus. This distribution remained wide, but moved to lower values as the animals were starved. The micro-nuclear DNA values were constant under all culture conditions, at a value of 7.5 × 10−12 g per nucleus. This gave an estimate of the haploid genome size, 2.25 × 1012 daltons, which is approximately ten times that obtained by DNA renaturation studies.

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Author notes

  1. C. A. Cullis

    Present address: John Innes Institute, Colney Lane, 70F, Norwich, NOR, England

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich, England

    C. A. Cullis

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  1. C. A. Cullis
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Additional information

This work was supported by a Commonwealth Scholarship to the author. Thanks are due to the Medical Research Council for funds to purchase the Vickers densitometer.

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Cullis, C.A. DNA amounts in the nuclei of Paramecium bursaria . Chromosoma 40, 127–133 (1972). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00321458

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00321458

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