on the behaviour of slime molds to inform their search for dark matter. Chemical signals The chemicals that aggregate slime molds are called acrasins. The first acrasin to be discovered was cAMP in Dictyostelium discoideum. During the aggregation phase of their life cycle, Dictyostelium discoideum amoebae communicate with each other by traveling waves of cAMP. There is an amplification of cAMP when they aggregate. In 2019, research done by University of Tokyo found that while pre-stalk cells move toward cAMP, pre-spore cells ignored cAMP. The acrasin for Polysphondylium violaceum has been purified in 1983. It is a dipeptide that has been named glorin. Its major components are the amino acids, glutamic acid and ornithine. An amino group (NH3) and a carboxyl group (COOH) of the glutamic acid are blocked respectively by a propionyl group and an ethyl ester. An amino group on the ornithine molecule is blocked by a lactam ring. Both cyclic AMP and glorin are small molecules. See also Sorocarp Swarming motility Water mold References Further reading External links Slime mold photo series by Barry Webb, 2023 Common names of organisms Eukaryotes