GEPHE SUMMARY Print
Entry Status
Published
GepheID
GP00001133
Main curator
Martin
PHENOTYPIC CHANGE
Trait Category
Trait State in Taxon A
C. elegans N2
Trait State in Taxon B
C. elegans CB4856
Ancestral State
Data not curated
Taxonomic Status
Taxon A
Common Name
-
Synonyms
roundworm; Rhabditis elegans; Caenorhabditis elegans (Maupas, 1900); Rhabditis elegans Maupas, 1900
Rank
species
Lineage
Show more ... s; Eukaryota; Opisthokonta; Metazoa; Eumetazoa; Bilateria; Protostomia; Ecdysozoa; Nematoda; Chromadorea; Rhabditida; Rhabditina; Rhabditomorpha; Rhabditoidea; Rhabditidae; Peloderinae; Caenorhabditis
NCBI Taxonomy ID
is Taxon A an Infraspecies?
Yes
Taxon A Description
C. elegans N2
Taxon B
Common Name
-
Synonyms
roundworm; Rhabditis elegans; Caenorhabditis elegans (Maupas, 1900); Rhabditis elegans Maupas, 1900
Rank
species
Lineage
Show more ... s; Eukaryota; Opisthokonta; Metazoa; Eumetazoa; Bilateria; Protostomia; Ecdysozoa; Nematoda; Chromadorea; Rhabditida; Rhabditina; Rhabditomorpha; Rhabditoidea; Rhabditidae; Peloderinae; Caenorhabditis
NCBI Taxonomy ID
is Taxon B an Infraspecies?
Yes
Taxon B Description
C. elegans CB4856
GENOTYPIC CHANGE
Presumptive Null
No
Molecular Type
Aberration Type
SNP
SNP Coding Change
Nonsynonymous
Molecular Details of the Mutation
F96L
Experimental Evidence
Taxon A Taxon B Position
Codon - - -
Amino-acid - - -
Authors
Kammenga JE; Doroszuk A; Riksen JA; Hazendonk E; Spiridon L; Petrescu AJ; Tijsterman M; Plasterk RH; et al. ... show more
Abstract
Ectotherms rely for their body heat on surrounding temperatures. A key question in biology is why most ectotherms mature at a larger size at lower temperatures, a phenomenon known as the temperature-size rule. Since temperature affects virtually all processes in a living organism, current theories to explain this phenomenon are diverse and complex and assert often from opposing assumptions. Although widely studied, the molecular genetic control of the temperature-size rule is unknown. We found that the Caenorhabditis elegans wild-type N2 complied with the temperature-size rule, whereas wild-type CB4856 defied it. Using a candidate gene approach based on an N2 x CB4856 recombinant inbred panel in combination with mutant analysis, complementation, and transgenic studies, we show that a single nucleotide polymorphism in tra-3 leads to mutation F96L in the encoded calpain-like protease. This mutation attenuates the ability of CB4856 to grow larger at low temperature. Homology modelling predicts that F96L reduces TRA-3 activity by destabilizing the DII-A domain. The data show that size adaptation of ectotherms to temperature changes may be less complex than previously thought because a subtle wild-type polymorphism modulates the temperature responsiveness of body size. These findings provide a novel step toward the molecular understanding of the temperature-size rule, which has puzzled biologists for decades.
Additional References
RELATED GEPHE
Related Genes
No matches found.
Related Haplotypes
No matches found.
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