Expr2570
Examination of male and hermaphrodite worms possessing the T03F1.5 pro::GFP construct demonstrated consistent GFP expression in two different anatomical regions. The first region identified was at the posterior end of the intestine of both hermaphrodite and male worms at all larval stages, and was consistent with the location of the sphincter muscle. The second region was at the anterior end of both hermaphrodite and male worms. Two cells anterior to the first pharyngeal bulb were linked to consistent GFP expression from the L1 to the adult stages. The two cell bodies located in the hypodermis on the dorsal and ventral side of the 'head' appeared to contain cellular processes which extended to the anterior end of the worm, in a fashion similar to dendrites. These processes bifurcated toward the anterior end, with the dorsal and ventral branches predicted to terminate in sensillae near the surface. Comparison of the observed expression patterns and the anatomical 'map' of C. elegans hermaphrodites indicated that no neurons are localised to this region, suggesting that the cells were not of this category. Instead, the GFP expression was consistent with two neuron-associated cells, namely the inner labial socket cell dorsal left (IlsoDL) and inner labial socket cell ventral left (IlsoVL). Transgenic worms which contained the pc::GFP (promoter and coding sequence) constructs showed similar expression profiles to those containing the promoter alone, but the GFP expression was significantly reduced.