TY  - GEN
T1  - The bodies of dpy-10(e128) are twice as stiff as wild type
AU  - Fechner, Sylvia
AU  - Loizeau, Frédéric
AU  - Nekimken, Adam L.
AU  - Pruitt, Beth L.
AU  - Goodman, Miriam B.
DO  - 10.17912/ecsm-mp67
UR  - http://beta.micropublication.org/journals/biology/ecsm-mp67/
AB  - DPY-10 is a collagen protein in the nematode’s cuticle. Mutations in the dpy-10 gene induce various morphological changes that lead to animals with a dumpy (Dpy) or roller (Rol) phenotype (Levy, Yang & Kramer, 1993). Here, we asked how such mutations affect body stiffness by comparing force-indentation curves in dpy-10(e128) and wild type worms. On average, dpy-10(e128) worms have a steeper force-indentation relationship, leading to a higher body stiffness (Fig 1C). Average stiffness values were 2.5 ± 0.9 N/m, SD, (n = 24) for dpy-10(e128) and 0.9 ± 0.3 N/m, SD, (n = 25) for wild type (N2) hermaphrodites. Qualitatively, we observed that some of the dpy-10(e128) worms had a disrupted cuticle and their bodies spontaneously eviscerated after being immobilized to an agarose pad. Finally, we confirm the finding that dpy-10(e128) worms are shorter (Fig 1D) and fatter (Fig 1E) than wild type worms with an average body length of 712 ± 68 µm (SD, n = 24) compared to wild type N2 worms 900 ± 68 µm (SD, n = 25) and an average body width at the pharynx of 42 ± 5.6 µm (SD, n = 24) compared to wild type N2 worms 36 ± 4 µm (SD, n = 25) (Levy, Yang & Kramer, 1993). Figure 1F shows body shape and size of the two genotypes (drawn to scale).
PY  - 2018
JO  - microPublication Biology
ER  -