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Pheromone Signaling pp 273–283Cite as

Quantitative Assessment of Pheromone-Induced Dauer Formation in Caenorhabditis elegans

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Part of the book series: Methods in Molecular Biology ((MIMB,volume 1068))

Abstract

Environmental conditions experienced during early larval stages dictate the developmental trajectory of the nematode C. elegans. Favorable conditions such as low population density, abundant food, and lower temperatures allow reproductive growth, while stressful conditions promote entry of second-stage (L2) larvae into the alternate dauer developmental stage. Population density is signaled by the concentration and composition of a complex mixture of small molecules that is produced by all stages of animals, and is collectively referred to as dauer pheromone; pheromone concentration is a major trigger for dauer formation. Here, we describe a quantitative dauer formation assay that provides a measure of the potency of single or mixtures of pheromone components in regulating this critical developmental decision.

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Acknowledgments

Funding for this work was provided by the National Science Foundation (IOS 0842452 and IOS 1256488 to P.S.), the Human Frontiers Science Program (RGY0042/2010 to P.S.), and the DGIST Convergence Science Center Program of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (11-BD-04 to K.K.). S.J.N. was supported by a postgraduate scholarship (PGS-D3) from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and by the Brandeis National Committee.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA, USA

    Scott J. Neal & Piali Sengupta

  2. Department of Brain Science, Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST), Daegu, South Korea

    Kyuhyung Kim

  3. National Center for Behavioral Genomics, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA, USA

    Piali Sengupta

Authors
  1. Scott J. Neal
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  2. Kyuhyung Kim
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  3. Piali Sengupta
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept. of Applied Biological Chemistry, The University of Tokyo School of Agricultural & Life Sciences, Tokyo, Japan

    Kazushige Touhara

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Neal, S.J., Kim, K., Sengupta, P. (2013). Quantitative Assessment of Pheromone-Induced Dauer Formation in Caenorhabditis elegans . In: Touhara, K. (eds) Pheromone Signaling. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 1068. Humana Press, Totowa, NJ. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-62703-619-1_20

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-62703-619-1_20

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  • Publisher Name: Humana Press, Totowa, NJ

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-62703-618-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-62703-619-1

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