Tackling thermosensation with multidimensional phenotyping

William R Schafer

doi:10.1186/1741-7007-10-91

Abstract

Most if not all animals sense temperature using specialized thermosensory neurons. Genetic studies in simple organisms have been used to identify gene products required for detecting temperature changes or for mediating the effects of temperature on behaviour. A recent study has used automated imaging and multidimensional phenotyping to characterize behavioural responses to aversive temperature changes and to identify mutants with specific defects in these processes.See research article: http://www.biomedcentral.com/1741-7007/10/85

Highlights

Most if not all animals sense temperature using specialized thermosensory neurons
C. elegans shows a different set of behavioral responses to more abrupt temperature changes from a desirable to a noxious temperature
Many of the key molecules involved in C. elegans thermosensation remain to be identified

Summary

Introduction

Most if not all animals sense temperature using specialized thermosensory neurons. Genetic studies in simple organisms have been used to identify gene products required for detecting temperature changes or for mediating the effects of temperature on behaviour. Sensory transduction in these neurons requires a cyclic GMP-gated channel; the molecules that sense temperature in AFD are not known. The identification of gene products and neurons involved in behaviors such as thermosensation has relied on manual assays with a single readout - for example, a thermotaxis index measuring how well animals navigate toward the cultivation temperature.

Results

Conclusion