Abstract

The last few decades have seen the structural and functional elucidation of small-molecule chemical signals called ascarosides in C. elegans. Ascarosides mediate several biological processes in worms, ranging from development, to behavior. These signals are modular in their design architecture, with their building blocks derived from metabolic pathways. Behavioral responses are not only concentration dependent, but also are influenced by the current physiological state of the animal. Cellular and circuit-level analyses suggest that these signals constitute a complex communication system, employing both synergistic molecular elements and sex-specific neuronal circuits governing the response. In this review, we discuss research from multiple laboratories, including our own, that detail how these chemical signals govern several different social behaviors in C. elegans. We propose that the ascaroside repertoire represents a link between diverse metabolic and neurobiological life-history traits and governs the survival of C. elegans in its natural environment.

摘要

在过去的几十年中，已经发现了秀丽隐杆线虫中称为chemical螨的小分子化学信号的结构和功能解析。scar虫病介导了蠕虫的几种生物学过程，从发育到行为。这些信号在其设计架构中是模块化的，其构建基块来自代谢途径。行为反应不仅取决于浓度，而且还受动物当前生理状态的影响。细胞和电路水平的分析表明，这些信号构成了一个复杂的通信系统，同时利用了协同分子元素和控制反应的性别特异性神经元电路。在这篇综述中，我们讨论了来自多个实验室（包括我们自己的实验室）的研究，这些研究详细介绍了这些化学信号如何控制秀丽隐杆线虫的几种不同社会行为。我们提出，the虫苷库代表了各种代谢和神经生物学生命历史特征之间的联系，并控制秀丽隐杆线虫在其自然环境中的生存。