Interacting genes in nematode dauer larva formation

Abstract

The dauer larva of Caenorhabditis elegans is a developmentally arrested stage induced by starvation or overcrowding. Mutant genes controlling the ability to form dauer larvae interact in a way which allows them to be ordered in a pathway. Mutant phenotypes suggest that the pathway corresponds to neural processing of environmental stimuli. © 1981 Nature Publishing Group.