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The localization of the cytoskeletal and signal transduction components of Dictyostelium discoideum's chemotactic cells were studied using the GFP method and immunohistochemical staining. It was established that chemotactic reactions are influenced by G protein-linked signaling events and that the cytosolic regulator of adenylyl cyclase protein must be translocated to the plasma membrane. Chemoattractant receptors and G protein subunits were evenly localized at the cell periphery and subsequently activated the adenyl cyclases.

The cloning and characterization of the oleate desaturase from basidiomycete Phanerochaete chrysosporium which contains a single integral membrane [[Delta].sup.12]-desaturase FAD2 related to the endoplasmic reticular plant FAD2 enzymes is reported. The results provide insight into the activity of the fatty acyl [[Delta].sup.12]-desaturase family and the evolution of basidiomycete fad2 genes from an ancestral desaturase.