FLAGELLAR DUPLICATION AND MIGRATION DURING THE TRICHOMONAS VAGINALIS

Trichomonas vaginalis is a flagellated protozoan, a representative of 1 of the earliest known eukaryotic lineages. Trichomonas vaginalis lacks centrioles but possesses basal bodies. We report here the cell cycle-dependent flagellar dynamics of T. vaginalis. By immunofluorescence, we found that T. vaginalis flagella duplicated during S-phase, segregated toward the nuclear poles, and then emanated from the spindle poles at mitosis. This behavior strongly parallels that of centrioles and other spindle pole-associated structures variously termed centrosomes, spindle pole bodies, or microtubule organizing centers. These obser- vations support the hypothesis that flagellar forces may have provided motile forces for spindle pole alignment in an ancestral eukaryote.