C. Elegans: out on an Evolutionary Limb

Overview

Journal Immunogenetics

Specialties Allergy & Immunology
Genetics

Date 2021 Nov 11

PMID 34761293

Citations 7

Authors

Nathalie Pujol

Jonathan J Ewbank

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

The natural environment of the free-living nematode Caenorhabditis elegans is rich in pathogenic microbes. There is now ample evidence to indicate that these pathogens exert a strong selection pressure on C. elegans, and have shaped its genome, physiology, and behaviour. In this short review, we concentrate on how C. elegans stands out from other animals in terms of its immune repertoire and innate immune signalling pathways. We discuss how C. elegans often detects pathogens because of their effects on essential cellular processes, or organelle integrity, in addition to direct microbial recognition. We illustrate the extensive molecular plasticity that is characteristic of immune defences in C. elegans and highlight some remarkable instances of lineage-specific innovation in innate immune mechanisms.

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