Predicting path from undulations for C. elegans using linear and nonlinear resistive force theory
File(s)
Published version
Author(s)
Keaveny, E
Brown, AE
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
A basic
issue
in the physics of behaviour
is the
mechanical relationship between an animal and its
s
urroundings. The nematode and model organism
C. elegans
provides an excellent platform to
explore this relationship due to its anatom
ical simplicity. Nonetheless
,
the physics of nematode
crawling, in which the worm undulates its body to move on a wet sur
face, is not completely
understood
and the mathematical models often used to describe this phenomenon are empirical
. We
confirm that linear resistive force theory
, one such empirical model,
is effective at predicting a
worm’s path from its sequence of bod
y postures for forward crawling, reversing, and turning and for a
broad range of different behavioural phenotypes observed
in mutant worms. However,
agreement
between the predicted and observ
ed path is lost when using this model with recently measured
val
ue
s
of the drag anisotropy. A recently proposed nonlinear
extension
of the
resistive force theory model
also provides accurate predictions, but does not resolve the discrepancy between the parameters
required to achieve good path prediction and the experi
mentally measured parameters.
This means
that
while
we have good effective models of worm crawling that can be used in application
s
such as
whole
-
animal simulations and advance
d tracking algorithms,
there are still unanswered questions
about the precise n
ature of the physical interaction between worms and their most commonly studied
laboratory substrate.
issue
in the physics of behaviour
is the
mechanical relationship between an animal and its
s
urroundings. The nematode and model organism
C. elegans
provides an excellent platform to
explore this relationship due to its anatom
ical simplicity. Nonetheless
,
the physics of nematode
crawling, in which the worm undulates its body to move on a wet sur
face, is not completely
understood
and the mathematical models often used to describe this phenomenon are empirical
. We
confirm that linear resistive force theory
, one such empirical model,
is effective at predicting a
worm’s path from its sequence of bod
y postures for forward crawling, reversing, and turning and for a
broad range of different behavioural phenotypes observed
in mutant worms. However,
agreement
between the predicted and observ
ed path is lost when using this model with recently measured
val
ue
s
of the drag anisotropy. A recently proposed nonlinear
extension
of the
resistive force theory model
also provides accurate predictions, but does not resolve the discrepancy between the parameters
required to achieve good path prediction and the experi
mentally measured parameters.
This means
that
while
we have good effective models of worm crawling that can be used in application
s
such as
whole
-
animal simulations and advance
d tracking algorithms,
there are still unanswered questions
about the precise n
ature of the physical interaction between worms and their most commonly studied
laboratory substrate.
Date Issued
2017-03-22
Date Acceptance
2017-01-25
Citation
Physical Biology, 2017, 14 (2)
ISSN
1478-3975
Publisher
IOP Publishing
Journal / Book Title
Physical Biology
Volume
14
Issue
2
Copyright Statement
© 2017 IOP Publishing Ltd. Original content from
this work may be used under the terms of the
Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 licence.
Any further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the title of the work, journal citation and DOI (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/)
this work may be used under the terms of the
Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 licence.
Any further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the title of the work, journal citation and DOI (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/)
Subjects
Science & Technology
Life Sciences & Biomedicine
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Biophysics
C. elegans
resistive force theory
locomotion
LOW-REYNOLDS-NUMBER
CAENORHABDITIS-ELEGANS
LOCOMOTION
GAIT
MODULATION
NEMATODES
MOTILITY
BEHAVIOR
MODEL
09 Engineering
02 Physical Sciences
06 Biological Sciences
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
025001