Myxogastria

Myxogastria is a group of amoebozoans whose feeding cells can fuse into multinucleate plasmodia that form spore-bearing fruiting bodies.

Myxamoeba: A haploid, amoeboid feeding cell in the life cycle of many myxogastrids. This is one of the feeding forms that can fuse to initiate a plasmodium.
Amoebozoa: A major eukaryotic lineage that includes amoebae and several groups of slime molds. Myxogastria belongs to this lineage, rather than to fungi.
Physarum polycephalum: A yellow plasmodial slime mold widely studied for its behavior, physiology, and network formation. Its large, laboratory-grown plasmodia make Myxogastria unusually accessible to experiment.
Dictyostelia: Amoebozoans whose separate amoebae aggregate into multicellular fruiting structures. Unlike myxogastrid plasmodia, dictyostelid aggregates retain boundaries between cells.
Myxoflagellate: A flagellated, haploid feeding stage found in the life cycle of many myxogastrids. In water, some myxamoebae transform into this swimming feeding form.
Amoeboid movement: Cell movement by changing shape and extending temporary projections of the cell surface. Amoeboid movement lets feeding cells and plasmodia explore surfaces.
Fuligo septica: A conspicuous slime mold commonly known as the scrambled-egg slime mold. Its large yellow fruiting mass is a familiar example of plasmodial development.
Protostelia: Amoebozoans that form small, simple fruiting bodies from individual amoeboid cells. Their fruiting structures develop without the large multinucleate plasmodium typical of Myxogastria.
Plasmodium (slime mold): A multinucleate mass of cytoplasm formed by repeated nuclear division without cell division. Cell fusion and growth produce the characteristic feeding stage of Myxogastria.
Phagocytosis: The uptake of particles or microorganisms by engulfing them with a cell membrane. Feeding cells obtain nutrients by engulfing bacteria and other food particles.

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Slime moldBroader topic: This group includes familiar plasmodial forms such as Physarum.