Altruism, cheating, and anticheater adaptations in cellular slime molds

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 2, 2026

Investigating Flagella-Driven Motility in Escherichia coli by Applying Three Established Techniques in a Series
07:59

Investigating Flagella-Driven Motility in Escherichia coli by Applying Three Established Techniques in a Series

Published on: May 10, 2020

Richard Ellis Hudson1, Juliann Eve Aukema, Claude Rispe

  • 1Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA.

The American Naturalist
|August 19, 2008
PubMed

Insights

Cellular slime molds (CSMs) exhibit altruism by forming fruiting bodies. Kin selection and anti-cheater adaptations help maintain this behavior despite social cheats, ensuring the survival of beneficial genotypes.

Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Developmental Biology
  • Social Behavior

Background:

  • Cellular slime molds (CSMs) display altruism, transforming into multicellular fruiting bodies with altruistic stalk cells and reproductive spores.
  • This altruism is threatened by 'cheaters'—genotypes that benefit without contributing.

Purpose of the Study:

  • Investigate mechanisms maintaining altruism in CSMs despite the presence of cheaters.
  • Evaluate the roles of kin selection and anti-cheater adaptations in CSM social evolution.

Main Methods:

  • Developed kinship-based models using CSM developmental biology to assess kin selection.
  • Reviewed proposed anti-cheater adaptations within CSM development.

Main Results:

  • Kin selection can maintain stalk-making genotypes in multi-founder aggregations if spore dispersal is limited and stalk height influences dispersal success non-linearly.
  • CSM developmental features, like redifferentiation suppression, are proposed as anti-cheater mechanisms.

Conclusions:

  • CSM altruism is robust, supported by kin selection under specific dispersal conditions.
  • Developmental adaptations likely play a crucial role in preventing social cheating and maintaining cooperation.

More Related Videos

A Visual Guide for Studying Behavioral Defenses to Pathogen Attacks in Leaf-Cutting Ants08:10

A Visual Guide for Studying Behavioral Defenses to Pathogen Attacks in Leaf-Cutting Ants

Published on: October 12, 2018

Investigating the Function of Coronin A in the Early Starvation Response of Dictyostelium discoideum by Aggregation Assays07:48

Investigating the Function of Coronin A in the Early Starvation Response of Dictyostelium discoideum by Aggregation Assays

Published on: June 18, 2016

Related Concept Videos

Altruism01:03

Altruism

Altruistic behaviors are “unselfish” behaviors—those that help another individual at the expense of the individual carrying out the behavior. Despite the negative consequences for the altruistic animal, these behaviors are thought to have evolved for several reasons.
Diversity of Protists IV01:27

Diversity of Protists IV

Amoebozoa represent a diverse group of terrestrial and aquatic protists that utilize lobe-shaped pseudopodia for locomotion and feeding. This characteristic differentiates them from the Rhizaria, which possess threadlike pseudopodia. The primary classifications within Amoebozoa include gymnamoebas, entamoebas, and the plasmodial and cellular slime molds. Phylogenetic evidence indicates that Amoebozoa diverged from a lineage that ultimately gave rise to fungi and animals.Gymnamoebas and...
Chemotaxis in E. coli01:27

Chemotaxis in E. coli

Chemotaxis in Escherichia coli is a sensory-driven motility mechanism that enables bacteria to navigate chemical gradients, moving toward beneficial environments while avoiding harmful conditions. This process relies on a signal transduction system integrating external chemical cues with flagellar motor control.Chemoreceptors and Signal DetectionE. coli detects chemical gradients through methyl-accepting chemotaxis proteins (MCPs), which are membrane-bound chemoreceptors that sense attractants...
Inclusive Fitness00:57

Inclusive Fitness

Most altruistic behavior—in which one animal helps another at a cost to themselves—occurs between relatives. Scientists think these altruistic behaviors evolved because they increase the inclusive fitness of the animal providing help.
Actin Polymerization and Cell Motility01:13

Actin Polymerization and Cell Motility

Actin is a family of globular proteins that are highly abundant in eukaryotic cells. It makes up approximately 1-5% of total cell protein concentration. Actin monomers polymerize to form a complex network of polarized filaments, the actin cytoskeleton, that plays a crucial role in many cellular processes, including cell motility, division, endocytosis, and metastasis of cancer cells.
Actin cytoskeleton dynamics can produce pushing, pulling, and resistance forces that help the cell to migrate.
Evolution of New Traits in Microbes01:24

Evolution of New Traits in Microbes

Microorganisms evolve rapidly due to their large population sizes and short generation times, often exhibiting measurable changes within days under laboratory conditions. Natural selection acts on standing genetic variation, enabling the retention and amplification of beneficial traits that confer fitness advantages in changing environments.Adaptive Pigment Regulation in RhodobacterIn Rhodobacter, a genus of purple non-sulfur bacteria, light-harvesting pigments such as bacteriochlorophyll and...