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Cilia drive developmental plasticity and are essential for efficient prey detection in predatory nematodes
Eduardo Moreno1, James W Lightfoot1, Maša Lenuzzi1
1Department of Evolutionary Biology, Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology, Max-Planck-Ring 9, 72076 Tübingen, Germany.
Proceedings. Biological Sciences
|October 3, 2019
Summary
Cilia in Pristionchus pacificus nematodes are crucial for sensing environmental cues that regulate mouth-form decisions and prey detection. However, self-recognition behaviors do not require fully functional cilia.
Area of Science:
- Cell Biology
- Developmental Biology
- Nematology
Background:
- Cilia are vital organelles in eukaryotes, mediating environmental sensing in nematodes.
- In Pristionchus pacificus, cilia influence adaptive behaviors like predatory feeding and mouth-form plasticity.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of cilia in regulating mouth-form decision, predatory feeding, and self-recognition in P. pacificus.
- To compare these functions with those in Caenorhabditis elegans.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of mutants affecting intraflagellar transport (IFT) subcomplexes and the DAF-19 transcription factor.
- Phenotypic assessment of mouth-form, predatory behavior, and self-recognition.
Main Results:
- Cilia are essential for processing environmental cues that govern mouth-form decisions and for effective prey detection.
- Mutations in different IFT components led to varied mouth-form phenotypes and predation deficits, suggesting distinct downstream signaling effects.
- Self-recognition was unaffected in cilia-deficient mutants, indicating alternative underlying mechanisms.
Conclusions:
- Cilia play a critical role in sensory perception and adaptive behaviors in P. pacificus, particularly in mouth-form plasticity and predation.
- The distinct effects of IFT mutations highlight the complexity of ciliary signaling pathways.
- Self-recognition mechanisms in P. pacificus appear independent of fully functional cilia.
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