Document Type
Article
Original Publication Date
2015
Journal/Book/Conference Title
Scientific Reports
Volume
5
DOI of Original Publication
10.1038/srep09564
Date of Submission
December 2015
Abstract
The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans is a widely used model for genetic dissection of animal behaviors. Despite extensive technical advances in imaging methods, it remains challenging to visualize and quantify C. elegans behaviors in three-dimensional (3-D) natural environments. Here we developed an innovative 3-D imaging method that enables quantification of C. elegans behavior in 3-D environments. Furthermore, for the first time, we characterized 3-D-specific behavioral phenotypes of mutant worms that have defects in head movement or mechanosensation. This approach allowed us to reveal previously unknown functions of genes in behavioral regulation. We expect that our 3-D imaging method will facilitate new investigations into genetic basis of animal behaviors in natural 3-D environments.
Rights
Copyright © 2015, Macmillan Publishers Limited. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Is Part Of
VCU Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Publications
Supplementary Figures and Methods
srep09564-s2.mov (799 kB)
Three-dimensional reconstructed images of a wild-type C. elegans recorded for 3 minutes.
srep09564-s3.mov (8741 kB)
A series of movies showing wild-type, vab-10 and eat-4 mutant animals that crawled in 3-D environments.
Comments
Originally published at http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/srep09564