Dictyostelium discoideum\u27s 35-year Contribution to Growth of Biology: A Bibliometric Analysis

Biological Abstracts is a sufficiently adequate bibliometric tool for the analysis of the accumulated literature of certain organisms. Dictyostelium discoideum (Cellular slime mold) titles are scarce, yet literature growth parallels some of the same growth patterns as the whole of science. Relatively few (5 percent) biologists produce most (55 percent) of the literature on this organism. American authors predominate. The literature is grouped into various categories such as aggregation, cytology, growth, and genetics with the molecular-physiological works surpassing all other categories combined in the last 5 years (66 percent). Although the literature is scattered worldwide, most articles are found in relatively few journals. Biological Bulletin was the steady home for information for 22 years with 15 articles and the Journal of Bacteriology accumulated 16 articles in the last 4 years of the survey. The analysis begins with Raper\u27s discovery description of D. discoideum in 1935 and ends with 1970