Nature Communications (Mar 2016)

Social amoebae trap and kill bacteria by casting DNA nets

  • Xuezhi Zhang,
  • Olga Zhuchenko,
  • Adam Kuspa,
  • Thierry Soldati

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms10938
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 7, no. 1
pp. 1 – 9

Abstract

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Neutrophils secrete net-like structures made of DNA and anti-microbial peptides, which can trap and kill extracellular pathogens. Here, the authors show that such nets are also produced by so-called Sentinel cells in the multicellular slug stage of the social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum.