The exposure of organisms to different temperature conditions causes the alteration of cellular functions and the expression of genes responsible for relieving cell damage. Heatshock stress response machinery is conserved among bacteria, plants and animals and involves the expression of the so-called HSPs, among others.
C.elegans has become a very useful model for the study of the physiological and cellular response to thermal stress, as well as its correlation with pathologies and aging. Using the WMicrotracker ARENA system it is possible to study the dynamics of behavioral response to stress in real time and measure the effect of new small molecules, genes or natural compounds. Here is an example of measurement…
Kinetics of behavioral changes in thermal stress
In this experiment we can observe the behavioral dynamic effect when a population of worms is subjected to temperature stress. As reported, a different response is observed in L3 larvae and adults of 3d age.
Methodology:
(1) Obtain synchronized populations of worms grown in NGM + OP50 at 20°C. (2) Collect the worms from the plates using buffer solution. (3) Count the number of worms in a volume of 10 ul and adjust the volume to obtain a concentration of [50 worms / 20ul]. (4) Transfer 20 μl of the worm solution to each well of a 6-well microplate containing NGM without bacteria. (5) Record the activity of the plate with worms using Wmicrotracker ARENA, setting the temperature as follows: 30m at 22 ° C, 90m at 37 ° C and 360m at 22 ° C. (6) Generate the data report and plot using MSExcel.