TY  - GEN
T1  - Deficient mechanosensation in mec-3 decreases precipice response in C. elegans
AU  - Mitchell, Robin M
AU  - Pattillos, Diana S
AU  - Zhang, Shuyu
AU  - Young, Jared J
DO  - 10.17912/micropub.biology.000429
UR  - http://beta.micropublication.org/journals/biology/micropub-biology-000429/
AB  - The roundworm Caenorhabditis elegans exhibits a variety of behaviors in response to external mechanical stimuli, such as reversing when prodded. One behavior that has remained uncharacterized until now is the precipice response, a phenomenon first alluded to by Chalfie et al. (2014) in which C. elegans move rapidly away from edges or gaps on an agar surface. Similar cliff avoidance behaviors have been observed in other species, such as mice, which sense cliffs using vision and their whiskers (Crawley 1999; Arakawa and Erzurumlu 2015). However, these sensory systems are lacking in C. elegans. We hypothesized that the precipice response is mediated at least in part by mechanosensation, as touch receptor and/or proprioceptive neurons might respond when there is no longer a solid surface supporting the worm from underneath. If this hypothesis is correct, we might observe a reduced precipice response in mechanosensory mutants. Our experiments sought to 1) characterize the precipice response and 2) explore the role of mechanosensation in this behavior.
PY  - 2021
JO  - microPublication Biology
ER  -