Social amoeba in motion In this month's feature article, Gad Shaulsky writes about his fascination with looking at whether cells can be altruistic using his chosen model organism, the social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum. Click on the videos below to watch individual "Dicty" cells congregate into a slug, and further differentiate into a stalk and spore. Video courtesy of Rex Chisholm at Northwestern University, showing a slug as it forms the lollipop-shape

Infographic: Dictyostelium Developmental Cycle By Gad ShaulskyDrag the red box to zoom into the development cycle of Dictyostelium discoideum. Roll over the numbers in the large pane to read more about how Dicty goes from unicellularity to a differentiated multicellular mass. Related Articles The Cheating Amoeba Video: Social activity of D. discoideum A Fluctuating RealityMicrobial Co-op in Evolution Genetic control of social behavior

The Cheating Amoeba Scanning electron micrograph of spore towers of the slime mold Dictyostelium discoideum. David Scharf / Photo Researchers, Inc What genes contribute to social interactions such as cheating or altruism? And what could cheating genes tell us about sociality, multicellularity, and cancer? A social soil amoeba could hold the answers. By Gad Shaulsky Related Articles Infographic: Dictyostelium Developmental Cycle Video: Social activ