Evidence of conditioned behavior in amoebae

Ildefonso M. De la Fuente; Carlos Bringas; Iker Malaina; María Fedetz; Jose Carrasco-Pujante; Miguel Morales; Shira Knafo; Luis Martínez; Alberto Pérez-Samartín; José I. López; Gorka Pérez-Yarza; María Dolores Boyano

doi:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-11677-w

Evidence of conditioned behavior in amoebae

Ildefonso M. De la Fuente, Carlos Bringas, Iker Malaina, María Fedetz, Jose Carrasco-Pujante, Miguel Morales, Shira Knafo, Luis Martínez, Alberto Pérez-Samartín, José I. López, Gorka Pérez-Yarza, María Dolores Boyano

Ben-Gurion University of the Negev

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

Associative memory is the main type of learning by which complex organisms endowed with evolved nervous systems respond efficiently to certain environmental stimuli. It has been found in different multicellular species, from cephalopods to humans, but never in individual cells. Here we describe a motility pattern consistent with associative conditioned behavior in the microorganism Amoeba proteus. We use a controlled direct-current electric field as the conditioned stimulus, and a specific chemotactic peptide as the unconditioned stimulus. The amoebae are capable of linking two independent past events, generating persistent locomotion movements that can prevail for 44 min on average. We confirm a similar behavior in a related species, Metamoeba leningradensis. Thus, our results indicate that unicellular organisms can modify their behavior during migration by associative conditioning.

Original language	English
Article number	3690
Journal	Nature Communications
Volume	10
Issue number	1
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-11677-w
State	Published - 1 Dec 2019

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

Chemistry(all)
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology(all)
Physics and Astronomy(all)

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https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-11677-w

Cite this

@article{00e8ff758105431191ce7e3621109c3b,

title = "Evidence of conditioned behavior in amoebae",

abstract = "Associative memory is the main type of learning by which complex organisms endowed with evolved nervous systems respond efficiently to certain environmental stimuli. It has been found in different multicellular species, from cephalopods to humans, but never in individual cells. Here we describe a motility pattern consistent with associative conditioned behavior in the microorganism Amoeba proteus. We use a controlled direct-current electric field as the conditioned stimulus, and a specific chemotactic peptide as the unconditioned stimulus. The amoebae are capable of linking two independent past events, generating persistent locomotion movements that can prevail for 44 min on average. We confirm a similar behavior in a related species, Metamoeba leningradensis. Thus, our results indicate that unicellular organisms can modify their behavior during migration by associative conditioning.",

author = "{De la Fuente}, {Ildefonso M.} and Carlos Bringas and Iker Malaina and Mar{\'i}a Fedetz and Jose Carrasco-Pujante and Miguel Morales and Shira Knafo and Luis Mart{\'i}nez and Alberto P{\'e}rez-Samart{\'i}n and L{\'o}pez, {Jos{\'e} I.} and Gorka P{\'e}rez-Yarza and Boyano, {Mar{\'i}a Dolores}",

note = "Funding Information: We would like to thank Dr. Andrew Goodkov from the Institute of Cytology (Russian Academy of Science) St. Petersburg, Russia, for valuable advices related to Amoeba organisms, Laura P{\'e}rez G{\'o}mez and Luis Rojo Garc{\'i}a for their assistance designing Fig. 1 and the AutoCAD 3D model, A-M P{\'e}rez Biedermann for her valuable contribution in our study, Jos{\'e} Gonz{\'a}lez Romero and Jos{\'e} Miguel P{\'e}rez P{\'e}rez from the Institute of Parasitology and Biomedicine “Lopez-Neyra” for their technical assistance. In addition, we thank Mar{\'i}a Calleja-Felipe for her valuable help in the peptide gradient experiments. This work was supported by a grant of the University of Basque Country (UPV/EHU), GIU17/066, the Basque Government grant IT974-16, and by the UPV/EHU and Basque Center of Applied Mathematics, grant US18/21”. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2019, The Author(s).",

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doi = "https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-11677-w",

language = "English",

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AU - De la Fuente, Ildefonso M.

AU - Bringas, Carlos

AU - Malaina, Iker

AU - Fedetz, María

AU - Carrasco-Pujante, Jose

AU - Morales, Miguel

AU - Knafo, Shira

AU - Martínez, Luis

AU - Pérez-Samartín, Alberto

AU - López, José I.

AU - Pérez-Yarza, Gorka

AU - Boyano, María Dolores

N1 - Funding Information: We would like to thank Dr. Andrew Goodkov from the Institute of Cytology (Russian Academy of Science) St. Petersburg, Russia, for valuable advices related to Amoeba organisms, Laura Pérez Gómez and Luis Rojo García for their assistance designing Fig. 1 and the AutoCAD 3D model, A-M Pérez Biedermann for her valuable contribution in our study, José González Romero and José Miguel Pérez Pérez from the Institute of Parasitology and Biomedicine “Lopez-Neyra” for their technical assistance. In addition, we thank María Calleja-Felipe for her valuable help in the peptide gradient experiments. This work was supported by a grant of the University of Basque Country (UPV/EHU), GIU17/066, the Basque Government grant IT974-16, and by the UPV/EHU and Basque Center of Applied Mathematics, grant US18/21”. Publisher Copyright: © 2019, The Author(s).

PY - 2019/12/1

Y1 - 2019/12/1

N2 - Associative memory is the main type of learning by which complex organisms endowed with evolved nervous systems respond efficiently to certain environmental stimuli. It has been found in different multicellular species, from cephalopods to humans, but never in individual cells. Here we describe a motility pattern consistent with associative conditioned behavior in the microorganism Amoeba proteus. We use a controlled direct-current electric field as the conditioned stimulus, and a specific chemotactic peptide as the unconditioned stimulus. The amoebae are capable of linking two independent past events, generating persistent locomotion movements that can prevail for 44 min on average. We confirm a similar behavior in a related species, Metamoeba leningradensis. Thus, our results indicate that unicellular organisms can modify their behavior during migration by associative conditioning.

AB - Associative memory is the main type of learning by which complex organisms endowed with evolved nervous systems respond efficiently to certain environmental stimuli. It has been found in different multicellular species, from cephalopods to humans, but never in individual cells. Here we describe a motility pattern consistent with associative conditioned behavior in the microorganism Amoeba proteus. We use a controlled direct-current electric field as the conditioned stimulus, and a specific chemotactic peptide as the unconditioned stimulus. The amoebae are capable of linking two independent past events, generating persistent locomotion movements that can prevail for 44 min on average. We confirm a similar behavior in a related species, Metamoeba leningradensis. Thus, our results indicate that unicellular organisms can modify their behavior during migration by associative conditioning.

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DO - https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-11677-w

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VL - 10

JO - Nature Communications

JF - Nature Communications

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M1 - 3690

ER -

Evidence of conditioned behavior in amoebae

Abstract

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