Organisms (non-human) which are widely used to study biological processes because their maintenance and breeding are easy in a laboratory are called model organisms. We have already met these in the previous article and already know how indispensable they are for varied forms of research. They are easy to study as they are small and have fewer numbers of genes which can be programmed easily. They have genes similar to humans so their genes can be modified and thus, many diseases can be studied. Model organisms can also be used to create highly detailed genetic maps (visual representation of the location of different genes on a chromosome). 

C. elegans is one of the popular model organisms. It is a nematode worm which is quite different from humans in anatomy but, it shares many similarities at the molecular level. It is among the most widely used model organisms around the world. It is quite potent as a model organism and has been studied thoroughly. With a lifespan of only 2 weeks, these worms produce offspring in large numbers through self-fertilization. It is also easy to handle because of its small size and modest nutritional requirements. 

Emile Maupas discovered C. elegans as Rhabditis elegans. It is the first multicellular organism which got its genome sequenced, so a lot of standard genomic methods have been developed using this organism. In 1963, Sydney Brenner, a prestigious molecular biologist at The Medical Research Council, Cambridge, England, decided to shift his attention in research from bacteria and phage to an animal. He decided to work with C. elegans in the early 1960s after considering and testing a lot of organisms to serve as model organisms for the eukaryotic processes, particularly for behaviour and neurobiology.