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How does a one-millimetre worm help win four Nobel Prizes? In this episode, we explore how C. elegans became one of the most influential organisms in modern biology — not because of its size, but because of its community.

Researchers, beginning with Sydney Brenner’s vision, built an ecosystem of radical openness: shared strains, shared annotations, shared tools, shared knowledge. This culture powered breakthroughs in apoptosis, GFP, RNA interference, and microRNAs, each recognised with a Nobel Prize.

We discuss how the CGC, WormBase, WormAtlas, open imaging libraries, and collaborative genetics transformed a tiny worm into a global scientific powerhouse. It’s the story of a field that chose to share — and in doing so, changed biology.

Key themes: • The collaborative backbone behind worm research • Why sharing strains and data accelerated Nobel-winning discoveries • How open tools shaped genetics, neuroscience, and ageing research • The social and scientific architecture of a uniquely supportive community • Why C. elegans is still leading modern multi-omics and connectomics

Based on the research article:🎧 Subscribe to the WOrM Podcast “From nematode to Nobel: How community-shared resources fueled the rise of Caenorhabditis elegans as a research organism” Victor R. Ambros, Martin Chalfie, Aric L. Daul, Andrew Z. Fire, David H. Hall, H. Robert Horvitz, Craig C. Mello, Gary Ruvkun, Nathan E. Schroeder, Paul W. Sternberg & Ann E. Rougvie. PNAS (2025) 🔗 https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2522808122

🎧 Subscribe to the WOrM Podcast Whole-organism stories from molecules to behaviour.

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]

Can a tiny dose of caffeine help a worm live longer? In this episode, we explore how C. elegans responds to the world’s favourite stimulant. Researchers show that low-dose caffeine extends lifespan, while higher doses flip into toxicity — revealing a fine balance between metabolic stress, development, and purinergic signalling.

We cover: How small amounts of caffeine boost survival in C. elegans Why high doses shorten lifespan and slow development Effects on growth, body size, and reproduction How adenosine signalling partially controls caffeine’s impact Why the DAF-2 insulin/IGF-1 pathway is required for the longevity effect What this teaches us about conserved stimulant–ageing biology It’s the worm equivalent of a perfectly measured flat white — just enough buzz to help you thrive.

Based on the research article: “Lifespan Extension Induced by Caffeine in Caenorhabditis elegans is Partially Dependent on Adenosine Signaling” José C. Bridi, Arthur G.A. Barros, Laura R. Sampaio, João C.D. Ferreira, Fabiano A. Antunes Soares & Marcos A. Romano-Silva. Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience (2015) 🔗 https://doi.org/10.3389/fnagi.2015.00220

🎧 Subscribe to the WOrM Podcast Whole-organism stories brewed fresh each week.

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]

How do you make a nanoparticle that tells you where it is and helps at the same time? In this episode, we dive into the chemistry behind polydiacetylene (PDA)—a polymer that changes colour when it senses temperature, pH, or stress.

Researchers combined PDA with biodegradable poly(glycerol adipate) to create self-reporting nanoparticles that:

Change colour from blue to red under stress or heat Track cells and nematodes without any added fluorescent dyes Degrade naturally via enzymatic action Carry drugs like usnic acid for therapeutic delivery

It’s a step toward theranostic polymers—materials that diagnose and treat simultaneously, glowing as they go. Even C. elegans joined the test, confirming safe uptake and real-time visibility.

📖 Based on the research article: “Tailoring the Properties of Polydiacetylene Nanosystems for Enhanced Cell Tracking Through Poly(glycerol Adipate) Blending: an In Vitro and In Vivo Investigation” Benedetta Brugnoli, Eleni Axioti, Philippa L. Jacob, Nana A. Berfi, Lei Lei, Benoit Couturaud, Veeren M. Chauhan, Robert J. Cavanagh, Luciano Galantini, Iolanda Francolini & Vincenzo Taresco Published in Macromolecular Chemistry and Physics (2025) 🔗 https://doi.org/10.1002/macp.202500259

🎧 Subscribe to the WOrM Podcast for more bright ideas in molecular sensing, smart polymers, and organism-level science.

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]

How can a worm’s intestine influence its descendants’ lifespan? This episode explores how lysosomes send metabolic signals through the epigenome to extend longevity across generations.

Researchers found that activating lysosomal lipid metabolism triggers transcriptional up-regulation of a histone variant, H3.3 (his-71), in the intestine. This histone is transported to the germ line, where it’s methylated at K79 by the methyltransferase DOT-1.3. The result is a heritable epigenetic state that promotes longer life across multiple generations of C. elegans.

The work reveals how metabolic signalling through lysosomes interacts with chromatin to link soma and germ line, showing how environmental changes like starvation can shape longevity inheritance.

📖 Based on: Zhang Q., Dang W., Wang M.C. Science (2025). “Lysosomes signal through the epigenome to regulate longevity across generations.” https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adn8754

🎧 Subscribe to the WOrM Podcast for more deep dives into the molecular lives of worms.

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]

In this episode, we dive into a new version of WormGazer as described in a recent GeroScience paper. This implementation automates movement monitoring in C. elegans populations as a rapid healthspan measure, offering a shortcut to detect ageing interventions and trade-offs.

Highlights include: • Monitoring multiple Petri dishes in parallel with cameras and image analysis over 7–14 days  • Showing that most functional decline happens in the first week of adulthood  • Validating with age-1(hx546) mutants, which remain active longer but move more slowly early on  • A dose-response test with sulfamethoxazole (SMX) where movement improvements are detectable within 7 days, compared to 40 days needed for traditional lifespan assays  • The benefit: non-invasive, scalable, and faster detection of ageing effects and negative trade-offs 

📖 Based on the research article: “Rapid measurement of ageing by automated monitoring of movement of C. elegans populations”

Giulia Zavagno, Adelaide Raimundo, Andy Kirby, Christopher Saunter & David Weinkove Published in GeroScience (November 2023) 

🔗 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11357-023-00998-w 

🎧 Subscribe to the WOrM Podcast for more breakthroughs in whole-organism ageing, automation, and quantitative biology.

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]

Is a wiring diagram enough to understand the brain? In this episode, we dive into how researchers combined whole-brain optogenetic stimulation with calcium imaging in C. elegans to reveal functional neural connections that go beyond the traditional connectome.

Key insights include:

A new functional atlas built from ~23,000 neuron pair experiments How neuropeptides and extrasynaptic signals contribute to brain activity Strong functional links often exist without anatomical connections A data-driven rethinking of how neural signals propagate and integrate Implications for plasticity, brain evolution, and full-organism modelling

This episode sheds light on how small brains can perform complex processing — by rewiring our assumptions about wiring.

📖 Based on the research article: “Neural signal propagation atlas of Caenorhabditis elegans” Francesco Randi, Anuj K. Sharma, Sophie Dvali & Andrew M. Leifer Published in Nature (2023) 🔗 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-023-06683-4

🎧 Subscribe to the WOrM Podcast for more full-organism insights into behaviour, neuroscience, and beyond.

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]

Worms without eyes shouldn’t see colour — yet C. elegans can. In this episode, we dive into a landmark study that shows how worms use blue-to-amber light ratios to make foraging decisions. When exposed to toxic blue pigments like pyocyanin, worms avoid them — but only under white light. The twist? They do it all without opsins.

We explore:

How worms detect and avoid blue-pigment-secreting P. aeruginosa Why light potentiates avoidance, but only for certain spectral ratios How lite-1 and GUR-3 receptors mediate spectral sensitivity Natural variation in colour preference across wild strains The discovery that stress-related genes jkk-1 and lec-3 underlie colour-guided behaviour

This episode uncovers a new form of opsin-free colour vision, expanding our understanding of how simple organisms read complex environments.

📖 Based on the research article: “C. elegans discriminates colors to guide foraging” Dipon Ghosh, Dongyeop Lee, Xin Jin, H. Robert Horvitz & Michael N. Nitabach Published in Science (2021) 🔗 https://doi.org/10.1126/science.abd3010

🎧 Subscribe to the WOrM Podcast for more full-organism surprises in perception, evolution, and behaviour.

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]

How does a worm know what’s good for dinner? In this episode, we uncover how C. elegans can distinguish between helpful and harmful microbes — and it’s all down to polyamines. These microbe-produced metabolites act like scent beacons, guiding worms to nutritious bacteria like E. coli while steering them away from pathogens.

We explore:

How chemosensory neurons detect polyamines like cadaverine and putrescine Why ADF and AWC neurons are tuned to sniff out E. coli-enriched scents How the AIB interneuron acts as a decision hub for foraging Why worms lose interest in mutant E. coli strains lacking polyamines What this tells us about host-microbe interactions and innate sensory coding

📖 Based on the research article: “Chemosensory detection of polyamine metabolites guides C. elegans to nutritive microbes” Benjamin Brissette, Lia Ficaro, Chenguang Li, et al. Published in Science Advances (2024) 🔗 https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adj4387

🎧 Subscribe to the WOrM Podcast for more full-organism discoveries in behaviour, sensory biology, and microbe-host interactions.

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]

Why do C. elegans lay eggs only when food is around? In this episode, we explore a newly uncovered neuromodulatory circuit that links food detection to reproductive behaviour using a clever form of disinhibition. At the heart of this is the AVK interneuron — silenced by dopamine when food is present — which normally blocks egg-laying until conditions are right.

We unpack:

How AVK neurons act as gatekeepers for egg-laying behaviour Dopamine from food-sensing neurons inhibits AVKs via DOP-3 receptors AVKs release a cocktail of neuropeptides (PDF-1, NLP-10, NLP-21) that modulate downstream AIY neurons Functional imaging, CRISPR mutants, and optogenetics map the full food-to-egg pathway How this reveals general principles of neuromodulation and disinhibition

📖 Based on the research article: “Food sensing controls C. elegans reproductive behavior by neuromodulatory disinhibition” Yen-Chih Chen, Kara E. Zang, Hassan Ahamed, Niels Ringstad Published in Science Advances (2025) 🔗 https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adu5829

🎧 Subscribe to the WOrM Podcast for more full-organism insights at the interface of environment, brain, and behaviour.

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]

In this episode, we dive into a milestone in C. elegans systems biology — the first application of SILAC-style metabolic proteome labelling in a whole animal. By feeding worms lysine auxotroph E. coli labelled with heavy lysine (Lys8), researchers enabled quantitative proteomics with precision typically reserved for cell culture.

But it gets better — they made it RNAi compatible, allowing side-by-side comparisons of wild-type vs mutant proteomes in the same run.

We discuss:

How worms were labelled with heavy lysine using auxotrophic E. coli How this enabled 94–97% incorporation of label in just one generation The creation of RNAi-ready NJF01 bacteria for knockdown and labelling Case study: NHR-49 loss alters lipid metabolism proteins at scale Why this approach paves the way for whole-organism proteogenomics

📖 Based on the research article: “Quantitative proteomics by amino acid labeling in C. elegans” Fredens, J., Engholm-Keller, K., Giessing, A., Pultz, D., Larsen, M.R., Højrup, P., Møller-Jensen, J., & Færgeman, N.J. Published in Nature Methods (2011) 🔗 https://doi.org/10.1038/nmeth.1675

🎧 Subscribe to the WOrM Podcast for more full-organism breakthroughs in metabolism, proteomics, and systems biology!

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]

In this episode, we explore a high-tech twist on developmental toxicology. Researchers have combined microfluidic engineering with machine learning to automate the analysis of thousands of C. elegans for chemical toxicity testing — no anaesthetics or low-res imaging required.

Using the vivoChip device and a custom ML model called vivoBodySeg, the team:

Captures 3D images of ~1000 worms from 24 populations at once Achieves near-human segmentation accuracy (Dice score: 97.8%) Measures subtle toxicity effects like changes in body size and gut autofluorescence Identifies EC10 and LOAEL values with high precision Uses few-shot learning to adapt the model to new worm shapes and sizes

This platform slashes analysis time by 140× and sets a new benchmark for high-throughput New Approach Methodologies (NAMs) in toxicology.

📖 Based on the research article: “Machine learning-based analysis of microfluidic device immobilised C. elegans for automated developmental toxicity testing” Andrew DuPlissis, Abhishri Medewar, Evan Hegarty, et al. Published in Scientific Reports (2025) 🔗 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-84842-x

🎧 Subscribe to the WOrM Podcast for more stories where whole-organism biology meets cutting-edge tech!

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]

In this episode, we follow Caenorhabditis elegans into the magnetic field. Researchers have developed an elegant way to measure whole-brain neural activity in freely moving worms using a calcium-sensitive MRI contrast agent — a major step toward non-invasive brain mapping at the organism scale.

We explore:

How a genetically targeted MRI probe was used to detect calcium flux across the entire worm brain The fusion of genetics, MRI physics, and behavioural tracking Real-time measurements of brain dynamics during natural behaviour How this technique opens the door to non-invasive neuroimaging in small model organisms Implications for understanding how global brain states coordinate behaviour

📖 Based on the research article: “Functional MRI of brain-wide activity in freely moving C. elegans” Uday A. Ramalingam, Andrew M. Leifer, et al. Published in Nature (2024) 🔗 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-024-08331-x

🎧 Subscribe to the WOrM Podcast for more full-organism innovations in imaging, neuroscience, and behaviour!

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]

In this episode, we climb into the world of nematode architecture — worm towers! Researchers have now captured Caenorhabditis worms forming vertical towers in nature — self-assembled living structures that help worms hitch rides and bridge gaps as a form of collective dispersal.

We explore:

First real-world evidence of towering in C. elegans and other Caenorhabditis species Lab experiments that trigger towering in controlled conditions How worms of all life stages can join towers — not just dauers Towers that grow, bend, and bridge gaps to reach new environments How touch alone can trigger towers to transfer en masse to new habitats

📖 Based on the research article: “Towering behavior and collective dispersal in Caenorhabditis nematodes” Daniela M. Perez, Ryan Greenway, Thomas Stier, Narcís Font-Massot, Assaf Pertzelan, Siyu Serena Ding Published in Current Biology (2025) 🔗 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2025.05.026

🎧 Subscribe to the WOrM Podcast for more full-organism wonders in behaviour, biomechanics, and evolution!

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]

In this episode, we go beyond the famous C. elegans connectome to explore how signal propagation doesn’t always follow the wires. Using powerful whole-brain calcium imaging combined with single-cell optogenetic activation, researchers mapped over 23,000 neuron pairings to build a functional atlas that rewrites parts of the worm’s wiring diagram.

We dive into:

How extrasynaptic neuropeptide signalling connects neurons outside synapses The discovery of functional connections invisible in the wiring diagram How C. elegans neural signals propagate both directly and indirectly The creation of a functional connectome that predicts spontaneous activity better than anatomy alone The surprising flexibility and plasticity of even simple nervous systems

📖 Based on the research article: “Neural signal propagation atlas of Caenorhabditis elegans” Francesco Randi, Anuj K. Sharma, Sophie Dvali & Andrew M. Leifer Published in Nature (2023). 🔗 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-023-06683-4

🎧 Subscribe to the WOrM Podcast for more full-organism neuroscience that goes deeper than the wires!

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]

In this episode, we travel back to one of the great origin stories in gene regulation: the discovery of lin-4, the first-ever microRNA. In Caenorhabditis elegans, scientists found that tiny non-coding RNAs could silence gene expression by pairing with target mRNAs — launching the entire field of microRNA biology. We explore: How lin-4 regulates developmental timing by repressing LIN-14 protein The discovery of small RNAs (22 and 61 nucleotides) as gene regulators The first evidence for RNA-RNA antisense interactions controlling translation Why this work reshaped our understanding of gene expression across species How a worm taught us that not all genes code for proteins 📖 Based on the research article: "The C. elegans Heterochronic Gene lin-4 Encodes Small RNAs with Antisense Complementarity to lin-14" Rosalind C. Lee, Rhonda L. Feinbaum & Victor Ambros. Published in Cell (1993). 🔗 https://doi.org/10.1016/0092-8674(93)90529-Y 🎧 Subscribe to the WOrM Podcast for more whole-organism breakthroughs that reshaped biology!

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]

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

🎧 Subscribe to the WOrM Podcast for more full-organism discoveries in parasitism, behaviour, and neurobiology!

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]

In this episode, we ask: can a heartless worm model arrhythmia? Turns out — yes. Using Caenorhabditis elegans as a stand-in for cardiac muscle, researchers tested the effects of polypyrrole nanoparticles (Ppy NPs) on pharyngeal pumping rhythms, revealing fascinating insights into how bioengineered materials might impact human-like tissues.

We explore:

How the worm pharynx mimics cardiac function Why mutants with sluggish pumps were rescued by Ppy NPs Long-lasting effects, even after the nanoparticles were expelled Calcium imaging showing altered Ca²⁺ dynamics in real time The power of C. elegans for safe-by-design nanomedicine screening

📖 Based on the research article: “Arrhythmic Effects Evaluated on Caenorhabditis elegans: The Case of Polypyrrole Nanoparticles” Sumithra Yasaswini Srinivasan, Pilar Alvarez Illera, Dmytro Kukhtar, et al. Published in ACS Nano (2023). 🔗 https://doi.org/10.1021/acsnano.3c05245

🎧 Subscribe to the WoRM Podcast for more science where whole organisms meet high-tech innovation!

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]

In this episode, we explore how Caenorhabditis elegans senses and responds to oxygen — not just by breathing, but by activating a finely tuned cGMP signalling network in real time. Using genetically encoded biosensors, researchers reveal how rising oxygen levels trigger tonic cGMP and Ca²⁺ responses in O₂-sensing neurons like PQR, and how a web of feedback loops controls these signals to shape behaviour.

We unpack:

The role of soluble guanylate cyclases in detecting O₂ How PDE-1 and PDE-2 form a push-pull system to shape cGMP signals Surprising individual variability in cGMP responses — even in identical worms Evidence for cGMP nanodomains and subcellular signal compartmentalisation How these pathways help worms make behavioural decisions in fluctuating oxygen

📖 Based on the research article: “In vivo genetic dissection of O₂-evoked cGMP dynamics in a Caenorhabditis elegans gas sensor” Africa Couto, Shigekazu Oda, Viacheslav O. Nikolaev, Zoltan Soltesz & Mario de Bono Published in PNAS (2013) 🔗 https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1217428110

🎧 Subscribe to the WoRM Podcast for more deep dives into sensory circuits, neuromodulation, and whole-organism neuroscience!

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]

In this episode, we dive into a genetic mystery: how can a single gene in plant-parasitic nematodes have thousands of alleles? This study unravels the bizarre behaviour of HYP effectors — genes that help nematodes infect plants but defy traditional genetics.

Using CRISPR, long-read sequencing, and clever maths, the researchers reveal:

​How the HYP gene rearranges motifs in its hyper-variable domain (HVD) with flawless precision​That most nematodes appear homozygous, despite the population showing extreme diversity​A proposed mechanism called HVD editing — a form of locus-specific somatic genome editing​Why this mirrors the way our immune system reshuffles antibody genes

This isn’t just about plant pests — it’s a rare glimpse at real-time genome innovation, where diversity is generated with intent, not random chance.

📖 Based on the research article: “A gene with a thousand alleles: The hyper-variable effectors of plant-parasitic nematodes” Unnati Sonawala, Helen Beasley, Peter Thorpe, Kyriakos Varypatakis, Beatrice Senatori, John T. Jones, Lida Derevnina & Sebastian Eves-van den Akker Published in Cell Genomics (2024). 🔗 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xgen.2024.100580

🎧 Subscribe to the WoRM Podcast for more strange and spectacular tales of genome biology.

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]