Life as a worm-- the nematode C. elegans
Life as a worm-- the nematode C. elegans
Hermaphrodites do it by themselves
An entire C. elegans hermaphrodite worm consists of exactly 959 cells EVERY SINGLE TIME, allowing one to follow the cell lineage.
Most lineages do not consist of single tissue types but the germline and the gut both arise from single founder cells
Most lineages do not consist of single tissue types but the germline and the gut both arise from single founder cells
the secret of embryonic development Within this lineage is the secret of embryonic development
Even cell death is programmed into the lineage C. elegans was used to identify the machinery that regulates programmed cell death in ALL animals
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2002 "for their discoveries concerning ’ genetic regulation of organ development and programmed cell death'" Sidney Brenner H. Robert Horvitz John Sulston
One mechanism is through asymmetric segragation of determinants How can lineage control cell fate? One mechanism is through asymmetric segragation of determinants
segregated into one cell at the 16-cell stage. That cell is the A determinant within the P granules is asymmetrically segregated into one cell at the 16-cell stage. That cell is the progenitor of the germline! DNA P granules Gilbert 8.33
In par mutants P granules are found in ALL daughter cells wildtype par-3 mutant
Mutations can alter lineages in many ways
Changes in the pattern of cell division Example #1- lin-22 Changes in the pattern of cell division
Changes in the pattern of cell division Example #1- lin-22 Changes in the pattern of cell division lin-22 is homologous to the Drosophila pair-rule gene hairy
Changes in the timing of cell division Example #2- lin-14 Changes in the timing of cell division L1 L2 L1 L2 L1 L1 L1
The vulva provides a great model for how cell interactions shape cell lineage! Vulva
Cell ablations help define the key players
All cells are created equal (or, the road to fame is paved with dead bodies)
The vul mutations helped define the RTK-Ras pathway, which is mutationally activated in about half of all human tumors
Does this remind you of anything we learned earlier?