Caenorhabditis elegans

C. elegans
Nematoda
Microscopic roundworms
Lives in soil and non-pathogenic
Why C. elegans?
Simple anatomy
Transparent
Invariant cell lineage
Short life cycle with brood size
Easy accessible embryos

4 Larval stages
L1: 4 gonad precursor cells
L2: DTC will be developed
L3: Shifting from mitotically diving to meiotically
dividing
L4: Start of spermatogenesis and then oogenesis

Spermatogenesis
Process wherein it forms sperm from initially
undifferentiated germ cells
Takes place during L4
Absence of flagellum in the spermatozoa
In hermaphrodites, they store both sperm and oocyte to
self-fertilize
In males, they store sperm and eject it to the vulva of the
hermaphrodite during ejaculation

Spermatogenesis

 Spermatogenesis

It takes place on the early 4 th larval stage. In

hermaphrodites, they store both sperm and oocyte to selffertilize. In males, they store sperm and eject it to the vulva
of the hermaphrodite during ejaculation. During the
spermatogenesis, the primary spermatocytes are attached to
a cytoplasmic core called rachis. These primary
spermatocyte will then bud off the rachis and will continue
the development to become secondary spermatocyte. The
fibrous body membranous organelles or FB-MOs, which
contains proteins needed by the future spermatids and
future spermatozoa, will partition a portion of the
spermatocyte and will become spermatids. It will leave a
residual body, wherein it is the deposit area of the organelles
and the proteins that arent needed anymore by the
spermatids. From spermatids, it will undergo spermiogenesis
and will have metamorphosis and will become spermatozoa.
Pseudopod is developed instead of a flagellum, which allows
the spermatozoa to move to the spermatheca lumen by
crawling, projecting the cell body.

Oogenesis
Process of forming the female gamete
In hermaphrodites, it takes place during late L4 up to
adulthood
Two major events occur:
Oocyte precursor germ cell undergoes meiotic division
Accumulation of substantial cytoplasm

Oogenesis
Oocyte germ cell will enter the meiotic prophase I
but not all of them will become oocytes.
Oogenesis has extended pachytene stage, in which
germ cells synthesize RNAs and proteins that are
donated to the oocyte.

Oogenesis
RNAs and proteins made in pachytene nuclei are
deposited into the rachis and delivered to the
growing oocytes via cytoplasmic streaming
The proximal 4 or 5 oocytes are in diakinesis

Oogenesis
The most proximal oocyte adjacent to the spermatheca,
undergoes meiotic maturation and is ovulated into the
spermatheca and fertilized
Embryos in the uterus will be ejected and will develop
externally
Meiotic maturation and ovulation is regulated by the
MSP signaling molecule

 In the presence of sperm, an oocyte undergoes

maturation and ovulation every ~23 minutes and
oogenesis is continuous.
In the absence of sperm, oocytes arrest in diakinesis
and ongoing oogenesis is inhibited

 Oogenesis

It takes place on the late L4 up to the adult stage. Oocyte

germ cell will enter the meiotic prophase I but not all of them
will become oocytes. Those cells that will not further develop
into oocyte will just function as nurse cells that will produce
macromolecules for oogenesis and it will be eliminated by
apoptosis. Oogenesis has extended pachytene stage, in which
germ cells synthesize RNAs and proteins that are donated to
the oocyte. In this stage, germ cells are on the surface of the
gonadal arm with an interior nucleus or cell free cytoplasmic
region called rachis. RNAs and proteins made in pachytene
nuclei are deposited into the rachis and delivered to the
growing oocytes via cytoplasmic streaming. The proximal 4 or
5 oocytes are in diakinesis. The most proximal oocyte
adjacent to the spermatheca, undergoes meiotic maturation
and is ovulated into the spermatheca and fertilized. The MSP
or the Major sperm protein, which is secreted by the sperm
cells thats why only the proximal ones are going to be
matured and ovulated, regulates this. The oocyte that
undergo maturation will enter the spermatheca where it will
be ovulated, since it is now ovulated and now surrounded
with sperm, it will then be fertilized and will develop to
become an embryo that will now be on the uterus. From the
uterus, these embryos will be ejected externally via the vulva.