A TEMPERATURE-SENSITIVE MUTANT IN TETRAHYMENA PYRIFORMIS, SYNGEN 1

ABSTRACT After treatment with nitrosoguanidine a mutation to temperature sensitivity was obtained in Tetrahymena pyriformis, syngen 1. The trait is controlled by a recessive allele, ts, at a locus linked to serotype locus T. IS is completely recessive, unlike any other allele studied in this organism, and the heterozygotes do not show vegetative assortment. The cross which revealed the linkage of ts and T failed to show evidence of the linkage of mt (mating type) and E-1 (esterase-I) which has been demonstrated in other crosses (ALLEN 1964; DOERDER 1972), but revealed a third case of linkage, involving mt and TO (tetrazolium oxidase). Taken together, these results are presumptive evidence for large interstrain differences in recombination properties within syngen 1.