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[
Dev Cell,
2014]
In this issue of Developmental Cell, Drake and colleagues (2014) report that Ras signaling results in Dicer phosphorylation, which induces its nuclear localization and modulates its function. This regulatory strategy, conserved in mammals, allows dynamic control of microRNA function required for Caenorhabditis elegans germline development and oogenesis.
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[
Nature Immunology,
2004]
The function of the mammalian TIR domain adaptor protein SARM is unclear. In Caenorhabditis elegans, however, the homolog of SARM controls the induction of peptides involved in innate immunity.
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[
Curr Biol,
2012]
New findings reveal that, in Caenorhabditis elegans embryos, the centrosome provides signals that induce cell polarization, independently of its function as the microtubule-organizing center.
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Cell Metab,
2016]
Age-related cognitive decline is one of the most haunting aspects of human aging. In a recent publication, Coleen Murphy and colleagues (Kaletsky et al., 2016) describe the transcriptional program that maintains youthful function of aging neurons in the nematode worm.
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PLoS Biol,
2022]
In this issue of PLOS Biology, Lattmann and colleagues report a new function for proteins of the DNA prereplication complex promoting the anchor cell to invade through the basement membrane and initiate vulval development in Caenorhabditis elegans.
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[
Curr Biol,
2015]
The new field of connectomics aims to obtain fine-grained anatomical connectivity data for vertebrate brains. A recent study highlights the types of experiments that will be necessary in order to draw conclusions about function from anatomical connectivity.
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[
Curr Biol,
2015]
A recent study identifies a role for a Toll pathway with likely non-canonical features in the developmental specification of BAG neurons in Caenorhabditis elegans. These neurons function to sense carbon dioxide, which is shown to facilitate avoidance of pathogenic bacteria.
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[
Curr Biol,
2007]
Gap junctions mediate intercellular communication and are critical for development and nervous system function. Initially thought to function solely as stand-alone molecules, it has now been shown that a stomatin-like protein regulates a gap junction channel in Caenorhabditis elegans.
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[
Dev Cell,
2014]
HORMA domain proteins are required for the careful orchestration of chromosomal organization during meiosis. Kim et al. (2014) and Silva et al. (2014) now provide structural and functional insights into the roles of C. elegans HORMA proteins, revealing parallels to the function of the HORMA protein MAD2 in mitotic checkpoint signaling.
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[
Curr Biol,
2006]
Katanin is a conserved AAA ATPase with the ability to sever microtubules, but its biological function in animal cells has been obscure. A recent study using electron tomography has found that katanin stimulates the production of microtubules in the meiotic spindles of Caenorhabditis elegans oocytes.