Worm Breeder's Gazette 10(3): 87
These abstracts should not be cited in bibliographies. Material contained herein should be treated as personal communication and should be cited as such only with the consent of the author.
As a part of study on neuro-muscular function, we tried to isolate mutants having abnormal response against some anesthetics. Sixteen strains of three independent mutations were isolated with EMS mutagenesis. Those had specific response and convulsive movement in 3OmM Ketamine-Hydrochloride(C13H16ClNO.HCl). All mutants had similar response to another drugs; serotonine, octopamine, as N2. In Ketamine, N2 worm had two phased kinetics between time and paralytic states, but responded no obvious convulsion to ketamine. Mutants basically show N2 like two phased kinetics, but were accompanied by clear convulsion during almost all stages. Modes of these convulsion was classified into two classes; quick and vibration-like convulsions in 15 strains. But nine of those show twitcher in the absence of ketamine and other strains had similar as N2. Another one shows wave- like convulsive movement in 30mM ketamine and had cold-sensitive uncoordinated movement in the absence of ketamine. This strain had almost paralytic phenotype at 16 C and recovered perfect motility after 40 min at 30 C. Genetic analysis shows that 16 strains divided into three independent mutations. Three of nine strains having twitcher in the absence of ketamine were mapped on LG-IV and could not complement to unc-22(e66). Strain J030 having wave-like convulsion was mapped on LGV. Double mutant from trans configuration to dpy-11(e224) was not obtained. This means that mutation site closed to dpy-11(e224), or might be the same cluster. Other strains showing vibration-like convulsions in 30mM ketamine but normal behavior without ketamine was in progress. One of them might be on LGII. These results indicate that ketamine had multiple function to neuro-muscular mechanisms in the worm. Further investigation of defectivity of these mutants and molecular characterization of defective genes allows us to know new aspects about mechanisms of receptor-effecter circuit and cold- sensitive uncoordinated movement of C. elegans.