THE EFFECTS OF INHIBITORS AFFECTING PROTEIN SYNTHESIS AND MEMBRANE ACTIVITY ON THE CHLAMYDOMONAS REINHARDHII PHOTOTACTIC RHYTHM

¹ Department of Zoology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Mass. 01003
² Department of Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, N. J. 08540.
³ Senior Honors thesis, Princeton University

Cycloheximide and puromycin slowed the biological timing of the phototactic rhythm of Chlamydomonas reinhardii. However, actinomycin D, rifampicin, chloramphenicol, streptomycin, chloral hydrate, valinomycin, LiCl, ethanol, methanol, isopropanol, procaine, tetracaine, dibucaine, and sodium lauryl sulfate did not alter the period length.

A cycloheximide resistant mutant (cyr-l) was isolated. The mutation is recessive since diploids produced from cyr-l and wild type are sensitive to cycloheximide. The phototactic rhythm of cyr-l, unlike that of the wild type, is not influenced by cycloheximide. This supports the view that the action of this drug in slowing the rhythm in the wild type is mediated by the inhibition of protein synthesis.

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