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The Paramecium Circadian Behavioral Rhythm: Light Phase Response Curves and EntrainmentDepartment of Physiology, School of Medicine, Kitasato University, 1-15-1 Kitasato, Sagamihara, Kanagawa 228, Japan
Facilities of Medical Engineering, School of Medicine, Kitasato University, 1-15-1 Kitasato, Sagamihara, Kanagawa 228, Japan The population of a ciliate protozoan, Paramecium multimicronucleatum, exhibits a circadian rhythm as measured by the number of the cells traversing an observation point ("traverse frequency," or TF). The present study examined phase shifting of the TF rhythm by administering 2-hr light pulses at different phases of the circadian cycle to cultures free running in constant darkness (DD). The results were summarized in a phase response curve (PRC), categorized as Type 1. This PRC indicated a relatively narrow phase zone insensitive to the light pulse ("dead zone"). Entrainment of the rhythm to light pulses repeated at 24-hr intervals was also examined, and it was found that the rhythm gradually reached a steady state, following several transient cycles, with the pulses falling at a phase corresponding to the narrow dead zone. Such a steady-state rhythm, with a minimum at ~3 hr after the pulse and a maximum at ~12 hr after the pulse, was mathematically simulated by superimposing a response function to the pulse on a sinusoidal function representative of the free-running rhythm in DD.
Journal of Biological Rhythms, Vol. 2, No. 4,
269-278 (1987) This article has been cited by other articles:
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