2D tracking of Platynereis dumerilii worms during spawning

2D Tracking the Nuptial Dance of Platynereis Dumerilii Worms

Shape Normalizing and Tracking Dancing Worms

During spawning, the marine worms Platynereis dumerilii exhibit certain swimming behaviors, which are described as nuptial dance. To address the hypothesis that characteristic male and female spawning behaviors are required for successful spawning and fertilization, we propose a 2D tracking approach enabling the extraction of spatiotemporal data to quantify gender-specific behaviors. One of the...

Neurotrophin, p75, and Trk Signaling Module in the Developing Nervous System of the Marine Annelid Platynereis dumerilii

In vertebrates, neurotrophic signaling plays an important role in neuronal development, neural circuit formation, and neuronal plasticity, but its evolutionary origin remains obscure. We found and validated nucleotide sequences encoding putative neurotrophic ligands (neurotrophin, NT) and receptors (Trk and p75) in two annelids, Platynereis dumerilii (Errantia) and Capitella teleta (Sedentaria,...

TALENs Mediate Efficient and Heritable Mutation of Endogenous Genes in the Marine Annelid Platynereis dumerilii

Platynereis dumerilii is a marine polychaete and an established model system for studies of evolution and development. Platynereis is also a re-emerging model for studying the molecular basis of circalunar reproductive timing: a biological phenomenon observed in many marine species. While gene expression studies have provided new insight into patterns of gene regulation, a lack of reverse genet...

Maternal Inheritance of Twist and Analysis of MAPK Activation in Embryos of the Polychaete Annelid Platynereis dumerilii

In this study, we aimed to identify molecular mechanisms involved in the specification of the 4d (mesentoblast) lineage in Platynereis dumerilii. We employ RT-PCR and in situ hybridization against the Platynereis dumerilii twist homolog (Pdu-twist) to reveal mesodermal specification within this lineage. We show that Pdu-twist mRNA is already maternally distributed. After fertilization, ooplasma...