Search Strains

Halicephalobus mephisto wild isolate. Grow at 37C: can survive higher temperatures than C. elegans. Useful model organism for studying heat tolerance; has expanded Hsp70 and AIG1 gene families. Has approximately 1.15% snp heterozygosity. Parthenogenetic reproduction so it cannot be out-crossed. References: Borgonie G, et al. Nature. 2011 Jun 2;474(7349):79-82. Weinstein DJ, et al. Nat Commun. 2019 Nov 21;10(1):5268.

Temperature sensitive dauer constitutive. Highly penetrant at 25C, much less so at 20C and 15C. The dauers recover almost immediately after temperature down shift, so one may work with synchronous broods. Semi-dominant: about 10% of heterozygotes form dauers.

seaSi40 [(pCFJ448) (eft-3p::fmo-2 + H2B::GFP) + Cbr-unc-119(+)] I. Higher level of FMO-2 over-expression compared to KAE9. Improved healthspan, stress resistance and longevity. Reference: Leiser SF, et al. Science 350.6266 (2015): 1375-8.

Defective response to short wavelength light; response strongly reduced but not eliminated. All other characteristics seem wild type, including reponse to mechanosensory stimuli. Strong, probably null, allele. This mutation also blocks the coordinated light response of unc-31(e928) and egl-30(ad805). To identify lite-1 homozygous mutants when crossing into different backgrounds, use a fluorescence stereomicroscope with a GFP filter and zoom to the hightest magnification (60-100X) to distinguish Lite from non-Lite animals. This works best when the animals are mired in thicker parts of the food to slow their spontaneous locomotion but not their response to light. Scan animals around the edge of the food where it is thickest. Leave the lid of the plate off for a minute or so before starting to let the animals adjust to air currents.

Slow-growing wild-type, Him. Segregates WT, DpyUnc, WT males and dead eggs (hDf8 homozygotes). Heterozygotes also exhibit low-penetrance vulval blips; these may be more pronounced, present at higher frequency and accompanied at times by tail blips upon recovery from starvation. hDf8 dominantly suppresses recombination from around unc-13 at least to dpy-5, and possibly to the left end of chromosome I. Maintain by picking WT and checking for correct segregation of progeny. This strain was generated by the Genetic Toolkit project, which should be acknowledged in any publications resulting from its use: The Genetic Toolkit is funded by the NIH National Center for Research Resources (NCRR) (USA) to Ann M. Rose, David L. Baillie, and Donald L. Riddle. Report all experimental results to Ann Rose.

Heterozygotes are WT and segregate WT (fluorescent), Dpys (highly fluorescent) and L3 lethals (non-fluorescent). GFP semi-dominantly expressed in 4-60 cell embyros, pharyngeal muscle and gut. Pharyngeal and gut GFP is easily seen in a UV dissecting microscope; early embryonic signal requires higher magnification. mIs14 occasionally crosses off mIn1[dpy-10], apparently by double recombination. mIs14 is ccEx9747 integrated into mIn1[dpy-10]. This is a three-construct element containing myo-2 and pes-10 promoters and a gut enhancer fused individually to GFP coding sequence. Called LB21B.

xchIs15 [hsp-16.2p::ssSel1::FLAG::superfolderGFP::spacer::humanAmyloidBeta1-42::let-858 3’UTR + rol-6(su1006)]. Maintain at 15C: Prone to transgene suppression at higher temperatures. Rollers. Upon heat shock, human amyloid beta is expressed and secreted into the extracellular space. Aggregates are found in the extracellular space after 16 hours. Generated in N2 background. Reference: Jongsma E, et al. eLife. 2023 Sep 20;12:e83465. doi: 10.7554/eLife.83465. PMID: 37728486.

kuIs118 [daf-15p::daf-15::mCherry + Cbr-unc-119(+)] II. kuIs118 is a single copy insertion into ttTi5605 via CRISPR/Cas9. Superficially wild-type. mCherry expression observed throughout the body. mCherry detected throughout development by western blot with anti-mCherry antibody, with highest expression levels in early larval stages. Reference: Sewell AK, et al. "The TORC1 phosphoproteome in C. elegans reveals roles in transcription and autophagy” iScience, 20 May 2022, 104186. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589004222004564.

No visible phenotype. Severely decreased levels of the RoRNP-associated CeY RNA. Higher frequency of mutant 5S rRNA molecules into rop-1 ribosomes. See also WBPaper00003694.

nIs51 [egl-10(+) + lin-15(+)] X. Egl-C, Bor, hyperforaging, hyperactive locomotion, and male longevity and mating reduced. By Western blotting and staining the EGL-10 protein is highly overexpressed relative to N2. nIs51 was generated by injecting the lin-15 rescuing plasmid pEK1 at 50 ug/ml and the egl-10 rescuing fragment pMK21 at 80 ug/ml into MT1642 lin-15(n765) worms. The resulting strain was gamma irradiated and an integrant isolated, and was backcrossed to N2 four times. nIs51 was mapped to the right arm of X.

Bacteria. Jim Lewis received this E. coli strain from Henry Epstein in 1977. It is a prototroph and the worms grow well on it in liquid, even when the bacteria are highly labeled with 35-S. It hasn't been tested to see if it is temperature sensitive. It should be distributed as "Jim Lewis' NA22" until it has been confirmed that this is a certified version of NA22. Biosafety Level: BSL-1. Grow on NGM.

Caenorhabditis sp 36 wild isolate. Male-female strain. Maintain by mating. Maintain at 25C. A gonochoristic species isolated from adult weevils (Niphades variegatus), with whom they appear to be tightly associated during its life cycle. A genome comparison highlighted that C. sp. 36 has the smallest genome so far sequenced in the elegans supergroup, despite of being closely related to the largest genome species, C. japonica.

Maintain at 15-20C: will form dauers at higher temps. Slow growing. Pick GFP+ to maintain. Heterozygotes are GFP+ and segregate WT GFP+ hets, arrested nT1[qIs51] aneuploids, and non-GFP daf-2(e1370); isp-1(qm150) homozygotes (sterile). Homozygous nT1[qIs51] inviable. Pick WT GFP and check for correct segregation of progeny to maintain. [NOTE: Originally published daf-2(e1370); isp-1(qm150) strain MQ876 was found to not actually contain the daf-2(e1370) mutation. This strain was made to study the double mutant and revealed that daf-2(e1370); isp-1(qm150) homozygotes are inviable/sterile.] Reference: Cooper et al. In preparation.

Homozygous sterile mutation balanced by bli-4- and GFP-marked translocation. Heterozygotes are WT with pharyngeal GFP signal, and segregate WT GFP, arrested hT2 aneuploids, and non-GFP tm1598 homozygotes (produce ~100% dead eggs, slightly higher penetrance at 25C). Homozygous hT2[bli-4 let-? qIs48] inviable. Pick WT GFP and check for correct segregation of progeny to maintain. Reference: Peters N, et al., J Cell Sci. 2010 Mar 1;123(Pt 5):795-805.

otIs545 [gcy-5p::RFP + LacO repeats]. otIs593 [let-858p::GFP::LacI + ttx-3p::mCherry]. Maintain at 20C; otIs545 is very unstable at lower temperatures. RFP expression in ASER neuron. LACI::GFP aggregates on LacO repeats to form two dots in every nucleus. otIs545 is unstable, presumably due to the highly repetitive nature of the LacO array. Stock should be periodically examined for RFP expression and GFP localization to retain expression of the array. Reference: Patel T & Hobert O. eLife 2017.

otEx105 [lim-7::GFP + lin-15(+)]. Highly penetrant line, but non-Muv/Muv does not correlate well with presence/absence of extrachromosomal array. Maintain by picking GFP-positive animals under GFP-dissecting scope. GFP strongly expressed in gonad sheath cell pair 1.

dvIs62 [snb-1p::hTDP-43/3' long UTR + mtl-2p::GFP] X. Temperature-sensitive. Maintain at 16C to minimize selection against transgene. [NOTE: Out-crossing has eliminated embryonic lethality seen in parental strain CL6049 when raised at 25C.] Uncoordinated from hatching; phenotype is stronger at higher temperatures. Intestinal GFP expression. Parental strain CL6049 out-crossed 6x to N2. Reference: Koopman M, et al. MicroPubl Biol. 2023 Apr 19:2023:10.17912/micropub.biology.000766. doi: 10.17912/micropub.biology.000766. eCollection 2023. PMID: 37151213.

syEx1136 [myo-2p::GFP + unc-119(+)]. unc-119 animal rescued with array that expresses GFP in the pharyngeal muscles. Pick non-Unc animals to maintain the array. Highly outcrossed version of unc-119(ed3) generated by the Sternberg lab. Pick Unc animals for heavily outcrossed unc-119(ed3) to use for out-crossing biolistic insertions, mosSCI insertions or miniMos insertions based on unc-119 selection. Reference: Frokjær-Jensen C, et al. Nat Methods. 2012 Jan 30;9(2):117-8.

ytEx209 contains [mel-46(+) + sur-5::GFP]. Maintain by picking GFP+. Culture at 20°C or higher in order not to lose the transgene. GFP minus worms are Mel or sterile at 25 C (completely penetrant). Strong but not fully penetrant Mel at 15 C. To start a yt5 homozygous culture transfer several GFP minus worms to 15°C.

umnIs78 [myo-2p::mKate2 + NeoR, I: 12541645 (intergenic)] I. Heterozygous strain. Crossover suppressor for LGI right. Inversion includes unc-75 and unc-54(h1040). Heterozygotes are wild-type (not paralyzed) with dim mKate2 expression in pharynx, and segregate heterozygotes (not paralyzed, dim mKate2), homozygous wild-type (not paralyzed, no mKate2), and hIn1 homozygotes (paralyzed, bright mKate2). Pick non-paralyzed, dim mKate2 worms and check for correct segregation of progeny to maintain. Maintain at 20C or higher: recombined balancer seems more prone to breaking down at low temperatures. Derived by crossing parental strain CGC105 (hIn1[umnIs78]) to RG3173 (Y40B1B.7(ve673[LoxP + myo-2p::GFP::unc-54 3' UTR + rps-27p::neoR::unc-54 3' UTR + LoxP])/hIn1[unc-54(h1040)]) and selecting for the recombined hIn1 worms.

umnIs75 [myo-2p::GFP + NeoR, I: 12541645 (intergenic)] I. Heterozygous strain. Crossover suppressor for LGI right. Inversion includes unc-75 and unc-54(h1040). Heterozygotes are wild-type (not paralyzed) with dim GFP expression in pharynx, and segregate heterozygotes (not paralyzed, dim GFP), homozygous wild-type (not paralyzed, no GFP), and hIn1 homozygotes (paralyzed, bright GFP). Pick non-paralyzed, dim GFP worms and check for correct segregation of progeny to maintain. Maintain at 20C or higher: recombined balancer seems more prone to breaking down at low temperatures. Derived cross of parental strains CGC94 (hIn1[umnIs75]) to QP2460 (hIn1[umnIs78, unc-54(h1040)]/+) and selecting for the recombined hIn1 worms.

muIs84 [sod-3p::GFP + rol-6(su1006)]. Maintain at 20C or higher. Embryonic lethal at 15C. GFP should be visible at low magnification. Reference: Xu X, Kim SK. PLoS Genet. 2012;8(12):e1003108.

wgIs177 [egl-27p::TY1::EGFP::3xFLAG + unc-119(+)]. Maintain at 20C or higher. Embryonic lethal at 15C. Reference: Xu X, Kim SK. PLoS Genet. 2012;8(12):e1003108.

ccIs4251 [(pSAK2) myo-3p::GFP::LacZ::NLS + (pSAK4) myo-3p::mitochondrial GFP + dpy-20(+)] I. stIs10161 [egl-27p::HIS-24::mCherry + unc-119(+)]. Maintain at 20C or higher. Embryonic lethal at 15C. mCherry should be visible at low magnification. Reference: Xu X, Kim SK. PLoS Genet. 2012;8(12):e1003108.

Throws males. Maintain at 15C. Sterile at higher temperatures.

Unc. Maintain at 15C. Sterile at higher temperatures.

heSi141 [hlh-8(short)::FLAG::CRE::tbb-2 + unc-119(+)] X. Strain is viable at 15-25 C, but non-tissue specific recombination is observed more frequently in other tissues at higher temperatures (25C). Expression of CRE recombinase in the mesoblast lineage driven by the hlh-8 promoter. Reference: Ruijtenberg S & van den Heuvel S. Cell. 2015 Jul 16;162(2):300-13.

heSi142 [elt-2::FLAG::CRE::tbb-2 + unc-119(+)] X. Expression of CRE recombinase in the intestine driven by the elt-2 promoter. Strain is viable at 15-25 C, but non-tissue specific recombination is observed more frequently in other tissues at higher temperatures (25C). Reference: Ruijtenberg S & van den Heuvel S. Cell. 2015 Jul 16;162(2):300-13.

heIs9 [myo-3p::cyd-1 + myo-3p::cdk-4::Venus + myo-3p::GFP::H2B] IV. Expression of CYD-1, CDK-4::VENUS, and GFP::H2B in body wall muscles (BWM). Over-expression of tagged CYD-1 and tagged CDK-4 from integrated transgene causes incidental extra BWM nuclei. Expression levels are higher that those from heIs12 in SV860. Reference: Korzelius J, et al. PLoS Genet. 2011 Nov;7(11):e1002362. PMID: 22102824

vtIs1 [dat-1p::GFP + rol-6(su1006)] V. Strain does not roll obviously. gt1981 is a point mutation in a highly conserved residue. Hypersensitive to oxidative stress: Increased dopaminergic neurodegeneration after 6-OHDA exposure and increased developmental delay after exposure to rotenone and paraquat. Reference: Offenburger SL, et al. https://www.biorxiv.org/content/early/2017/10/13/203067.

cuIs2 [myo-2c:: GFP + rol-6(su1006)]. Weak Rollers. Dauer constitutive at higher temperatures. Maintain at 15C.

Temperature-sensitive. Maintain at 15C. Complements other sdc-2 alleles at 15C. At 20C animals are not Dpy or Tra, but there is a low penetrance of lethality, some Egl animals, and some animals will Bag after a couple days of egg-laying. y93 fails to complement other sdc-2 alleles at 25C; homozygotes are Egl,Tra and weakly Dpy at higher temperatures. Shifting embryos (prepared from non-Dpy non-Egl non-Tra gravid adults at 20C) from 20C to 25C is sufficient to alter their phenotype. Reference: Nusbaum C & Meyer BJ. Genetics. 1989 Jul;122(3):579-93.

Maintain at 15-20C. Multivulva (Muv) phenotype at higher temperature.

oxIs12 [unc-47p::GFP] X. GFP expression in GABA neurons. Higher axon regeneration in aged animals. Reference: Byrne AB, et al. Neuron. 2014; 81(3):561-73.

hpIs814 [flp-18p::LoxP::eBFP::Stop::LoxP::TeTx::wCherry + twk-40p(short)::Cre]. Red fluorescence in AVA. twk-40(hp834) is a loss-of-function allele. twk-40(hp834) itself is highly loopy and a weak backward coiler. The presence of hpIs814 in the background reduces body bending and speed compared to twk-40(hp834) alone.