Caenorhabditis elegans News and Research

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Caenorhabditis elegans is a free-living, transparent nematode (roundworm), about 1 mm in length, which lives in temperate soil environments.

Study findings shed light on fundamental feature of nerve repair

Through a study of roundworm nerve cells with severed axons, researchers at Nagoya University showed that a signaling cascade that normally functions in promoting the phagocytosis of apoptotic cells also acts in inducing axon regeneration.

24 Aug 2018

Scientists turn to C. elegans for new model of peripheral neuropathy

Studying transthyretin amyloidoses-;a group of progressive nerve and cardiac degenerative diseases caused by the buildup of misfolded transthyretin proteins in the body-;has long been hampered by the lack of animal models of the disease.

9 Aug 2018

Scientists discover and characterize new toxin in cholera bacteria

The bacterium Vibrio cholerae was discovered more than 150 years ago but remains as one of the main causes of bacterial infectious disease globally, especially in low-income nations where it occurs endemic, and outbreaks of cholera disease can lead to major epidemics.

26 Jun 2018

Scientists identify new inherited neurodevelopmental disease

Researchers have identified a new inherited neurodevelopmental disease that causes slow growth, seizures and learning difficulties in humans.

23 May 2018

Fearful worms provide new clues about human anxiety

Ask a dozen people about their greatest fears, and you'll likely get a dozen different responses. That, along with the complexity of the human brain, makes fear--and its close cousin, anxiety--difficult to study.

19 Mar 2018

New study identifies mechanisms to lengthen egg viability in worms

Women have been told for years that if they don't have children before their mid-30s, they may not be able to. But a new study from Princeton University's Coleen Murphy has identified a drug that extends egg viability in worms, even when taken midway through the fertile window, which could theoretically extend women's fertility by three to six years.

23 Feb 2018

Study describes new protection mechanisms to fight neurodegeneration in Parkinson's and Alzheimer's

A new research study reveals RAC1 protein could be a new therapeutic target to study the molecular mechanisms related to the neurodegenerative processes in Parkinson's disease.

20 Feb 2018

Roundworms may provide new clues to nicotine dependence

Researchers at the University of Michigan Life Sciences Institute found that a previously dismissed genetic mechanism may contribute to nicotine dependence, and to the withdrawal effects that can make quitting smoking so difficult.

7 Nov 2017

Scientists one step closer to solving puzzle of how nerves can self-heal

Monash University scientists are one step closer to solving the riddle of how nerves can self-heal. The scientists from the Biomedicine Discovery Institute (BDI) have found signals in the tiny transparent roundworm that control the mechanism by which severed nerves self-heal.

7 Nov 2017

Umass Amherst scientist receives grant to study pollutant effects on embryos in animal models

Environmental health scientist Alicia Timme-Laragy at the University of Massachusetts Amherst recently received a $1.9 million grant from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences to study the health effects of two environmental pollutants, perfluoro-octanesulfonic acid (PFOS) and its recent replacement chemical, perfluoro-butanesulfonic (PFBS).

20 Oct 2017

Researchers identify new molecular pathway that controls aging in worms

Investigators at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and University Hospitals Health System have identified a new molecular pathway that controls lifespan and healthspan in worms and mammals.

13 Oct 2017

Studies shed new light on leading cause of birth defects and miscarriage

Two recent Northwestern University studies shed new light on the mystery of the leading cause of birth defects and miscarriage, laying the foundation for further research in an understudied but crucially important field of genetic study.

3 Oct 2017

Scientists aim is to better understand effects of DNA damage on aging process

The heredity substance DNA is the blueprint of our life. Like an instruction manual it contains all the information needed for cells and the body to function properly.

30 Aug 2017

Study elucidates how aerobic exercise protects the sick heart

Regular exercise is considered an important form of treatment for heart failure, a condition in which the heart is unable to pump enough blood to meet the body's needs.

18 Aug 2017

Impaired DNA replication may lead to trans-generational inheritance of epigenetic changes

Scientists reveal that a fault in the process that copies DNA during cell division can cause epigenetic changes that may be inherited for up-to five generations.

17 Aug 2017

New findings could help better understand aging process and extend lifespan

Restricting how much you eat without starving has been shown to robustly extend lifespan in more than 20 species of animals including primates.

2 Aug 2017

WPI research program aims to understand gender differences in neurobiology

Many complicated neurological disorders appear to have a gender bias. Women, for example, are more likely to develop Alzheimer's disease, while men are at greater risk for Parkinson's disease.

17 May 2017

Microscopic probes simplify process of measuring electrical signals in small animals

Microscopic probes developed at Rice University have simplified the process of measuring electrical activity in individual cells of small living animals. The technique allows a single animal like a worm to be tested again and again and could revolutionize data-gathering for disease characterization and drug interactions.

17 Apr 2017

Multi-disciplinary project receives £390,000 grant to discover genetic cause of epilepsy

The University of Liverpool has received a £390,000 grant from Medical Research Council to conduct research into how mutations in genes can cause epilepsy.

20 Feb 2017

LMU study shows crucial role of microRNAs in protecting precursors of neurons

Programmed cell death is an integral part of embryonic development. Exploring the regulation of the process, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet in Munich researchers have shown that so-called microRNAs protect the precursors of neurons from 'precocious' elimination.

13 Feb 2017