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A spurious fln-2 mutation in a wide variety of commonly used C. elegans strains

Marina Kniazeva1,2, Gary Ruvkun3,4

  • 1Molecular Biology , Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts.

Micropublication Biology
|July 25, 2025
PubMed

Insights

A common Caenorhabditis elegans mutation, fln-2, is present in the dpy-5 strain, affecting thousands of transgenic lines. This expands the known prevalence of the fln-2 mutation in research models.

Area of Science:

  • Genetics
  • Developmental Biology
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • The fln-2 mutation has been identified in Caenorhabditis elegans.
  • Its prevalence in commonly used strains was not fully understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To describe the presence of the fln-2 mutant allele in the dpy-5 (e907) strain.
  • To highlight the broad impact of this mutation on transgenic Caenorhabditis elegans research.

Main Methods:

  • Genetic analysis of Caenorhabditis elegans strains.
  • Review of strain lineage and historical data.

Main Results:

  • The fln-2 mutant allele is present in the dpy-5 (e907) strain.
  • This strain is ancestral to thousands of transgenic Caenorhabditis elegans lines generated by the C. elegans Expression Project.
  • The fln-2 mutation's impact extends to numerous transgenic lines used in diverse research areas.

Conclusions:

  • The fln-2 mutation is more widespread in Caenorhabditis elegans research than previously recognized.
  • Researchers using transgenic lines derived from the dpy-5 (e907) strain should be aware of the potential confounding effects of the fln-2 mutation.
  • This finding necessitates re-evaluation of experimental results in affected lines.

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