Roundworm [Caenorhabditis elegans]

C. elegans represents a very high throughput model use to assess the physiological mechanisms affected by genetic variabillity and pharmacological treatment. As the worm has only 302 neurons, there is a great capacity to generate many transgenic strains to analyze genetic factors that disrupt physiological mechanisms underlying certain disorders, such as anxiety and depression.

Our research includes wild type and some mutant (e.g. Serotonin transporter knockout) C. elegans strains. The behavioral assessment of C. elegans involves analyzing micro behaviors, including orientation of movement, social interactions and sexual reproduction. Our research also focuses on testing the effects of different drugs and drug interactions in C. elegans.

C. Elegans Videos
- Locomotory Behavior (51 s)