celegans

Michael Nitabach joins TWiN to discuss the finding that the nematode C. elegans, which do not have eyes, can discriminate between colors to guide foraging decisions and move them away from harmful bacteria that produce a blue-pigment toxin.

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Ori Lieberman, Jason Shepherd, Timothy Cheung, and Vivianne Morrison

Guest: Michael Nitabach

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Links for this episode

• C. elegans discriminates colors (Science)
• Timestamps by Jolene. Thanks!

Music is by Ronald Jenkees

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The cell cortex makes use of plastin's connections

Cortical actomyosin contractility regulates a variety of morphogenetic processes at both the cellular and tissue-based levels. Ding et al. reveal that, in the Caenorhabditis elegans zygote, the actin cross-linking protein plastin optimizes connectivity within the cortical actomyosin network to coordinate large-scale contractile processes that drive cell polarization and cytokinesis. This biosights episode presents the paper by Ding et al. from the May 1st, 2017, issue of The Journal of Cell Biology and includes an interview with the paper's senior author, Ronen Zaidel-Bar (National University of Singapore). Produced by Caitlin Sedwick and Ben Short. See the associated paper in JCB for details on the funding provided to support this original research.

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At the end of cytokinesis, the microtubule-rich midbody connecting the daughter cells is either shed into the extracellular space or retained by one of the daughters. Chai et al. find that the midbodies released from C. elegans Q neuroblasts are cleared via a pathway that closely mimics the removal of apoptotic cell corpses. This biosights episode presents the paper by Chai et al. from the December 24, 2012 issue of the Journal of Cell Biology and includes an interview with senior author Guangshuo Ou (Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China). Produced by Caitlin Sedwick and Ben Short. See the associated paper in JCB for details on the funding provided to support this original research.

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The Rockefeller University Press
biosights@rockefeller.edu