| Autor: |
Banse SA; Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA. pphil@uoregon.edu., Jarrett CM; Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA. pphil@uoregon.edu., Robinson KJ; Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA. pphil@uoregon.edu., Blue BW; Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA. pphil@uoregon.edu., Shaw EL; Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA. pphil@uoregon.edu., Phillips PC; Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA. pphil@uoregon.edu. |
| Abstrakt: |
Reproduction is a fundamental process that shapes the demography of every living organism yet is often difficult to assess with high precision in animals that produce large numbers of offspring. Here, we present a novel microfluidic research platform for studying Caenorhabditis elegans' egg-laying. The platform provides higher throughput than traditional solid-media behavioral assays while providing a very high degree of temporal resolution. Additionally, the environmental control enabled by microfluidic animal husbandry allows for experimental perturbations difficult to achieve with solid-media assays. We demonstrate the platform's utility by characterizing C. elegans egg-laying behavior at two commonly used temperatures, 15 and 20 °C. As expected, we observed a delayed onset of egg-laying at 15 °C degrees, consistent with published temperature effects on development rate. Additionally, as seen in solid media studies, egg laying output was higher under the canonical 20 °C conditions. While we validated the Egg-Counter with a study of temperature effects in wild-type animals, the platform is highly adaptable to any nematode egg-laying research where throughput or environmental control needs to be maximized without sacrificing temporal resolution. |
