Balanced trade-offs between alternative strategies shape the response of C. elegans reproduction to chronic heat stress.

ABSTRACT: To ensure long-term reproductive success organisms have to cope with harsh environmental extremes. A reproductive strategy that simply maximizes offspring production is likely to be disadvantageous because it could lead to a catastrophic loss of fecundity under unfavorable conditions. To understand how an appropriate balance is achieved, we investigated reproductive performance of C. elegans under conditions of chronic heat stress. We found that following even prolonged exposure to temperatures at which none of the offspring survive, worms could recover and resume reproduction. The likelihood of producing viable offspring falls precipitously after exposure to temperatures greater than 28°C primarily due to sperm damage. Surprisingly, we found that worms that experienced higher temperatures

SUBMITTER: Aprison EZ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4148340 | biostudies-literature | 2014

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature