DNA replication in Physarum polycephalum: characterization of replication products in vivo.

Synchronous plasmodia of Physarum polycephalum in DNA synthesis were pulse-labelled with [oH]- thymidine for time periods of 15 seconds up to 9 minutes, or given a 30 seconds pulse followed by chase periods of 9 minutes up to 6 hours. Sedimentation analysis in alkaline sucrose gradients revealed at least five species of single stranded DNA14 molecules in the pulse experiments. Co-sedimentation of [14C]-labelled phage-DNA gave relative S-values of 5-7, 13-15, 23-25, 30 and 33-35 for these DNA molecules, all of which can be chased into DNA of higher molecular weight.