Gut-brain connection signals worms to alter behavior while eating
When a hungry worm encounters a rich food source, it immediately slows down so it can devour the feast. Once the worm is full, or the food runs out, it will begin roaming again. A new study from MIT now reveals more detail about how the worm’s digestive tract signals the brain when to linger in a plentiful spot. The researchers found that a type of nerve cell found in the gut of the worm Caenorhabditis elegans is specialized to detect when bacteria are ingested; once that occurs, the neurons release a neurotransmitter that signals the brain to halt locomotion. The researchers also identified new ion channels that operate in this specialized nerve cell to detect bacteria. “In terms of a precise mechanism of how the gut signals back up to the brain, it was unclear what was going on,” says Steven Flavell, an assistant professor of brain and cognitive sciences and...