Stress-induced protein dynamics and growth arrest in C. elegans during development

During post-embryonic development into adults, animals face an environment that fluctuates constantly. For example, in nutrient availability, temperature, and osmolarity (e.g., salt concentration). To survive, grow, and ultimately reproduce, animals must adapt to both minor deviations from optimal conditions, as well as extreme stresses that threaten cellular integrity. This thesis explores two fundamental questions: first, how do developing animals deal with small deviations from their optimal environment? And second, how do they handle extreme deviations that cause stress and cellular damage? To investigate these questions, we use the nematode C. elegans. C. elegans is a widely used model organism because it has relatively rapid post-embryonic development, its genetics are well characterized, and it is transparent (which allows us to study processes within cells). Using fluorescent time-lapse microscopy, we track the dynamics of developmental genes, as well as the dynamics of the stress-response protein DAF-16/FOXO in individual animals. Here we control environmental conditions such as temperature, nutrient availability and salt concentration and measure the effect on protein dynamics. This approach allows us to link processes at the cellular level to those at the whole-body level.