Abstract
BackgroundIn C. elegans and other nematode species, body size is determined by the composition of the extracellular cuticle as well as by the nuclear DNA content of the underlying hypodermis. Mutants that are defective in these processes can exhibit either a short or a long body size phenotype. Several mutations that give a long body size (Lon) phenotype have been characterized and found to be regulated by the DBL-1/TGF-β pathway, that controls post-embryonic growth and male tail development.ResultsHere we characterize a novel gene affecting body size. lon-8 encodes a secreted product of the hypodermis that is highly conserved in Rhabditid nematodes. lon-8 regulates larval elongation as well as male tail development. In both processes, lon-8 appears to function independently of the Sma/Mab pathway. Rather, lon-8 genetically interacts with dpy-11 and dpy-18, which encode cuticle collagen modifying enzymes.ConclusionThe novel gene lon-8 encodes a secreted product of the hypodermis that controls body size and male ray morphology in C. elegans. lon-8 genetically interacts with enzymes that affect the composition of the cuticle.
Highlights
In C. elegans and other nematode species, body size is determined by the composition of the extracellular cuticle as well as by the nuclear DNA content of the underlying hypodermis
RNAi by feeding causes an increase in body length (1.3 ± 0.08 mm in animals treated with control vector versus 1.4 ± 0.08 mm in animals treated with lon-8 RNAi, n = 75), as previously observed by others [21]
We have identified a novel gene that controls body size and male ray morphology in C. elegans and is conserved in nematodes
Summary
In C. elegans and other nematode species, body size is determined by the composition of the extracellular cuticle as well as by the nuclear DNA content of the underlying hypodermis. Several mutations that give a long body size (Lon) phenotype have been characterized and found to be regulated by the DBL-1/TGF-β pathway, that controls postembryonic growth and male tail development. The hypodermis consists of several syncytia of fused epidermal cells [5] The largest of these syncytia that covers the entire mid-body region of the animal is called hyp. Hyp increases in nuclear content and cell size as progressively more daughters of the lateral seam cells fuse with it [4,5]. In C. elegans and other nematode species, a substantial part of growth takes place after larval development is completed [2]. Growth is at least partially dependent on the DNA content of the hypodermis [2,4,7]
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