In this episode, we track how Strongyloides stercoralis — a human-infective nematode — uses carbon dioxide sensing to navigate both outside and inside its host. This tiny parasite shifts its response to CO₂ depending on life stage: repelled when searching for a host, but attracted once inside.

We explore:

Life-stage-specific behaviour: iL3s flee CO₂, iL3as chase it How Ss-BAG neurons detect CO₂ via the Ss-GCY-9 receptor CRISPR-generated mutants that lose their ability to sense CO₂ A new method for creating stable knockout lines in S. stercoralis How CO₂ helps worms navigate through the bloodstream, lungs, and gut during infection

📖 Based on the research article: “Carbon dioxide shapes parasite-host interactions in a human-infective nematode” Banerjee et al., 2025, Current Biology 🔗 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2024.11.036

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This podcast is generated with artificial intelligence and curated by Veeren. If you’d like your publication featured on the show, please get in touch.

📩 More info: 🔗 ⁠⁠www.veerenchauhan.com⁠⁠ 📧 [email protected]