Pristionchus pacificus var. california
Soil Nematode
Soil nematode (Pristionchus pacificus). Credit: www.nematodes.org
Habitat
Pristionchus pacificus has been well studied in the laboratory. Recently, efforts have been initiated to learn more about its ecology and the specific habitat/ecological niche of the species in the wild. There are currently 12 species from the genus Pristionchus that have been identified in Northern America, Europe and Asia. Specifically, Pristionchus species in Europe and North America are often associated with various scarab beetles, such as June Bugs (Scarabaeidae). These interactions are currently being studied in more detail. The working strain and the species that is being sequenced was collected in 1988 from soil in a flower garden, near Blair High School, Pasadena, California.
Biology
P. pacificus is a small, free living roundworm having an elongated cylindrical body, tapered at both ends, with ridged skin, no segmentation, and no appendages. Adults grow to about 1mm in length, propagate as self-fertilizing hermaphrodites, feed on bacteria and fungi and have a four day generation time at 20C in the laboratory. A single self-fertilizing hermaphrodite lays on average 190 eggs over a period of several days. Hermaphrodites have approximately 1000 cells and many of the cell lineages are similar or even identical to those of Caenorhabditis elegans. Their bodies are transparent; therefore, individual cells are easily observed using a Nomarski microscope, a microscope especially suited for the evaluation of surface quality and defects. Males are rare, occurring at a low frequency, but can be induced under low food or other stress conditions.
-- Adapted from Max-Plank Institute for Developmental Biology
Sequencing Plan
Initial survey sequencing to attempt to determine the genomic landscape of the organism has been completed. The sequencing plan includes obtaining 6.5-fold coverage of P. pacificus in plasmids and end sequencing the available fosmid clones. Following assembly assessment, a decision will be made regarding a follow-up round of sequence improvement (automated pre-finishing). Funding for the sequence characterization of the P. pacificus var California genome is being provided by the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Contacts
| Name | Affiliation |
|---|---|
| Patrick Minx | The Genome Institute, Washington University School of Medicine |
| Ralf Sommer | Department 4 - Evolutionary Biology, Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology |
Sequences & Maps
Assemblies
| Name | Date | Description | Blast DBs |
| Pristionchus_pacificus-5.0 | Jan 10, 2007 | 8.92X | contigs reads.unplaced supercontigs |
| Pristionchus_pacificus-5.0.1 | Jan 29, 2008 | 8.92X | contigs supercontigs |
Sequences
| Name | Date | Description | Blast DBs |
| Pristionchus_pacificus | Mar 30, 2008 | Fosmid ends | fosmid_ends |
Related Links
Sequence Data
