Meeting Abstract

61.1  Tuesday, Jan. 6  Molecular differences between male and hermaphrodite sperm in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans FRAIRE-ZAMORA, JJ*; CARDULLO, RA; University of California, Riverside; University of California, Riverside jfrai001@student.ucr.edu

Reproductive strategies in nematode species comprise gonochoristic, hermaphroditic, and parthenogenetic forms. In C. elegans, hermaphrodites produce sperm in their last larval stage and then switch to the production of eggs allowing for self-fertilization. Hermaphrodites can also mate with males to produce cross progeny. While both sexes produce sperm they do so in different organs, the hermaphrodite in the oviduct and the male in the testis. A signaling pathway that involves proteins of the SPE group triggers sperm motility. This group of proteins is responsible for the extension of a pseudopod that renders the spermatozoa motile and thus enables fertilization. Motility activation is initiated by ovulation in hermaphrodites and by contact with the female oviduct in males.However, little is known about the potential molecular and physiological differences between spermatozoa of males and hermaphrodites. In this work we present differences in protein patterns between sperm from males and hermaphrodite worms. Sperm cells were fractionated using differential centrifugation and their protein patterns were compared using gel electrophoresis coupled to immunoblotting and Mass Spectrometry. Preliminary results will be discussed. The SICB-GIAR 2007 award supported this work.