Poly(b-L-malate) (PMLA) has been reported as an uncon-ventional, physiologically important biopolymer in plasmo-dia of myxomycetes, and has been proposed to function in the storage and transport of nuclear proteins by mimicking the phospho(deoxy)ribose backbone of nucleic acids. It is distributed in the cytoplasm and especially in the nuclei of these giant, multinucleate cells. We report here for the first time an increase in growth rate and a shortening of the cell cycle after the injection of purified PMLA. .
