Impairing one sensory modality enhances another by reconfiguring peptidergic signalling in <i>Caenorhabditis elegans</i>.

ABSTRACT: Animals that lose one sensory modality often show augmented responses to other sensory inputs. The mechanisms underpinning this cross-modal plasticity are poorly understood. We probe such mechanisms by performing a forward genetic screen for mutants with enhanced O₂ perception in Caenorhabditis elegans. Multiple mutants exhibiting increased O₂ responsiveness concomitantly show defects in other sensory responses. One mutant, qui-1, defective in a conserved NACHT/WD40 protein, abolishes pheromone-evoked Ca²⁺ responses in the ADL pheromone-sensing neurons. At the same time, ADL responsiveness to pre-synaptic input from O₂-sensing neurons is heightened in qui-1, and other sensory defective mutants, resulting in enhanced neurosecr

SUBMITTER: Valperga G 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8871372 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature