A variant in the neuropeptide receptor npr-1 is a major determinant of Caenorhabditis elegans growth and physiology.

ABSTRACT: The mechanistic basis for how genetic variants cause differences in phenotypic traits is often elusive. We identified a quantitative trait locus in Caenorhabditis elegans that affects three seemingly unrelated phenotypic traits: lifetime fecundity, adult body size, and susceptibility to the human pathogen Staphyloccus aureus. We found a QTL for all three traits arises from variation in the neuropeptide receptor gene npr-1. Moreover, we found that variation in npr-1 is also responsible for differences in 247 gene expression traits. Variation in npr-1 is known to determine whether animals disperse throughout a bacterial lawn or aggregate at the edges of the lawn. We found that the allele that leads to aggregation is associated with reduced growth and reproductive output. The altered gene exp

SUBMITTER: Andersen EC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3937155 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature