Vulval development (Caenorhabditis elegans)

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"The C. elegans hermaphrodite vulva develops during postembryonic (larval) development from ventral epidermal precursors, and connects the developing uterus to the external environment. In the adult, the vulva is necessary for egg-laying (see Egg-laying) and for copulation with males (see Male mating behavior). Vulval development has attracted general interest for three main reasons. First, it serves as a paradigm for organogenesis. In particular, vulva development represents a well-understood case in which invariant development arises from multiple cell-cell interactions. It is also a striking example of tissue remodeling: the formation of a hole at a precise location in an organism. Second, it has been important for the genetic analyses of signaling and signal transduction by epidermal growth factor (EGF)-receptor LET-23 and RAS LET-60; (see RTKRas/MAP kinase signaling), LIN-12 (see LIN-12/Notch signaling in C. elegans), and WNT (see Wnt signaling), as well as the functions of the SynMuv and mediator proteins (see Transcriptional regulation). Third, it has become a paradigm for examining the interactions among regulatory pathways, notably the antagonism of EGF-receptor (LET-23) and Notch (LIN-12) pathways."

 

Vulval development