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Genetic control of behavioral plasticity
Genetic control of behavioral plasticity
C. elegans assesses its environmental fitness using chemical cues. The wild-type animals are attracted to the salt concentration that they previously experienced in the presence of bacterial food. Conversely, the animals avoid the concentration when experienced starvation. In other words, nematodes remember past environments and behave as if salt concentration is an indicator of food availability.
How do the animals sense salt concentration and food, and how do they translate that information into behavior? How do stress and aging affect cognition? Through analysing chemotaxis-deficient mutants, we elucidate the mechanisms of learning and memory.
Taste and smell in invertebrates
Taste and smell in invertebrates
Animals depend on their chemical senses for survival; they use smell and taste to find food. They also use pheromones to communicate with each other.
The mechanisms for detecting taste (water-soluble substances) and smell (volatile substances) are well understood. However, the sensory abilities that each species has acquired through adaptation to its environment are limited. We investigate the unique chemical sensory mechanisms of invertebrates.
Mechanisms of ion perception
Mechanisms of ion perception
C. elegans responds to a variety of ions, including Na⁺, K⁺, Cl⁻, and Cu²⁺. These stimuli are known to be received by distinct sensory neurons in the head. However, the receptor molecules for each ion have not yet been characterized, and the mechanism by which these ions are detected remains elusive. Our goal is to clarify the mechanisms by which cells respond to inorganic ions.
Caenorhabditis elegans
The soil nematode C. elegans is an excellent model organism for developmental biology and neuroscience. It produces many offspring with a short generation time, making it suitable for genetic analysis. The translucent body allows for the observation of cellular structures and responses through the use of fluorescent reporters. Furthermore, the animals exhibit behavioral responses to various environmental stimuli using a neurocircuit consisting of approximately 300 neurons. Each neuron has a unique name, and the connectome, or comprehensive map of neural connections of these neurons, is fully described. Thanks to these advantages, C. elegans has made significant contributions to our understanding of many biological phenomena.
Online textbooks: WormBook、WormBook in GENETICS
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