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C. elegans. Non Parasitic
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1. Caenorhabditis elegans(C. elegans)Kathy SzeniawskiClayton State UniversitySpring 2008 Alternate Food Sources
Population Growth
& Behaviors
2. C. elegans Non Parasitic
“Bacteria Eating” Nematode
959 Somatic Cells
Hermaphrodites and Males
Egg/Embryonic Stage
L1-L4 molts
? Dauer Stage (Hibernation)
Adult
3. C. elegans Natural Habitat Nutrient and Microorganism rich organic material
Cultures obtained from compost/garden soil, rotting fruit and mushroom beds
Associated with millipedes, insects, snails and slugs
4. Why C. elegans? Easy/Inexpensive To Maintain
Lives in a Petri Dish
Can be easily mutated
Feeds on OP-50 E. coli Bacteria in the lab
Short Life Cycle/Can produce several generations in a short period of time
Perfect for Genetic Research
5. OP-50 E. coli Grow OP-50 E. coli at 37 degrees C overnight in 2X YTB (Yeast Tryptone Broth)
Pipette onto NGM agar plates
Grow your “Bacterial Lawn” for 2 days
6. C. elegans Worm Farming Prepare NGM agar plate
Grow an OP-50 E. coli lawn
Chunk transfer or Single worm transfer
Grow at room temp
Extract eggs from Adult
Worms can be frozen
7. Contamination Maintain Sterile Techniques
8. Worm Research Research papers on “Different food source” experiments used different strains of bacteria to feed to the worms.
I hypothesized that wild type worms in their natural environment consumed food items since the lab worms that were collected were located in compost piles, mushroom beds and rotten fruit.
N2 wild type (normal) worms used
Transfer worms onto plates containing food products
Observe and document population growth and behavior
9. What Will the Worms Eat? OP-50 Bacteria
Fruit Snacks
Tofu
Hoodia chews
Trail Mix (Assorted dried fruits and nuts)
Spinach
Mushrooms
10. Project: 10 Plates of Each Spinach
Mushroom
Tofu
Bacteria
11. Population Designation (0-5) +
Swarm +++++ ++++
12. ResultsMy Hypothesis is Supported
13. Results
15. Unusual Behaviors Observed
Worms eating food products
Egg laying balls of Hermaphrodites
Egg mounds visible to the naked eye
Larval worm balls
Larval worms participating in Cannibalism
Larval worms killing and eating dust mites
Vortexes in food
16. Egg Mounds, Worm Balls & Vortexes
17. Future Research Repeat experiment with controlled seeding
Use equal masses of food products on all plates
Collect statistical data every day
Population size
Amounts of Large worms vs. Small worms
Observe behavior
18. Conclusion Different food sources CAN sustain C. elegans
Cannibalistic behavior observed several times; Only larval worms observed participating in cannibalism
Larval worms observed killing/eating dust mites
Overall Population size quickly spikes, then tapers off until only a few Dauer worms exist
Worm size in population tapers off to all small worms at the end of the growth curve
19. Thank-You Dr. Francine Norflus, Research Mentor
Dr. Michelle Furlong
Larry and MaryEllen Szeniawski
Kheem Tan
Clayton State University Faculty and Staff
20. References Altn, Z.F. and Hall, D.H. 2005. Handbook of C. Elegans Anatomy. Introduction to C. Elegans Anatomy. In WormAtlas. http://www.wormatlas.ord/handbook.contents.htm
Kiontke, Karin. and Sudhaus, Walter. Ecology of Caenorhabditis species. (January 09, 2006), Wormbook, ed. The C. Elegans research community, Wormbook, doi/10.1895/wormbook.1.37.1, http://www.wormbook.org
Brenner, Sydney. The worm goes to school. 2003. Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology and National Institute of Education
Barriere, Antoine. And Felix, Marie-Anne. Isolation of C. Elegans and related nematodes. (July 17, 2006), Wormbook, ed. The C. Elegans research community, WormBook, doi/10.1895/wormbool.1.115.1 http://www.wormbook.org
Shtonda, Boris and Avery, Leon. Dietary choice behavior in Caenorhabditis elegans. 2006 The Journal of Experimental Biology 209, 89-102.