Cells transform themselves in male worms to improve mating

A cell in worms that transforms itself into a completely different type of cell when males mature, to play a key role in mating behaviour, has been recently discovered by a team led by UCL researchers. The researchers say their findings, published in eLife , may lead to new clinical applications if scientists can reproduce the mechanism to reprogram cells to adopt new functions. Co-lead author Dr Richard Poole (UCL Cell & Developmental Biology) said: "In contrast to behaviour, which is characteristically flexible and variable, development needs to be consistent, and once a cell has its own identity with a particular function, this is considered to be fixed throughout the life of the animal. "But here, we describe in detail the case of a specialised cell that switches to a new cell type with a completely unrelated function later in the animal's life." This is the second time the research team has identified a new neuron in the C. elegans roundworm . In 2015, they identified a pair of neurons in male worms that allow them to remember and seek sex, even at the expense of food. Co-lead author Dr Arantza Barrios (UCL Cell & Developmental Biology) said: "The C. elegans worm has been studied extensively as a model organism, so we were surprised to find once again a type of neuron that had not yet been identified." The researchers were investigating a glial cell, a non-neuronal cell present in animal nervous systems. This particular glial cell is a key component of an opening in the worm's skin that allows it to sense the external world.