Life cycle of Didymium iridis
黄柄钙皮菌的生活史

Moist chamber culture method,oat-agar culture method and scanning electron microscopy were used to study the process of the individual development of Didymium iridis.The life cycle of spore-to-spore were completed in agar culture in Petri dish.The result shows that the life cycle of Didymium iridis comprises a unicellular amoeboid or swarm cell stage, a multinucleate plasmodium stage and a sporulation stage.The spore of D. iridis is globose and the spore surface is spiny. The spore germinates by means of a crack open and releases a single myxamoeba. The myxamoeba can move by amoeboid motion. When free water is available, myxamoebae can transform into swarm cells and swim in the water. A long, anteriorly directed flagellum is visible. Zygote forms into plasmodium. The mature plasmodium is brown. The plasmodial type is the phaneroplasmodium which appears as a fan-shaped network of veins. Spores developed on agar are fertile and resemble those on natural substrate.