Figure 2.

Morphogenic events precede fusion during mating in C. neoformans. Sterol distribution was analyzed in wild-type C. neoformans cells grown in YPD (A), or wild-type α cells cocultured with wild-type a cells (B–E), and α pak1 cells cocultured with a pak1 cells (F) on V8 medium for 4 h. Live cells were harvested, incubated for 1 min with filipin and observed immediately. By 4 h, a range of morphogenic changes were observed in the wild-type coculture, including shmoo-like projections (B), conjugation tubes (C and D), and conjugation (E). (G) C. neoformans shmoo-like projections contain polarized actin. Cells from the wild-type coculture were fixed and stained with rhodamine-conjugated phalloidin and DAPI to visualize F-actin and nuclei. (H) DIC image corresponding to G. Arrows denote shmoos and conjugation tubes. Bar, 10 μm.