Morphological and biochemical study of the ontogeny of the intestine of caenorhabditis elegans.

The ontogeny and post-embryonic development of the intestine of the nematode C. eiegans is poorly understood and it is our aim by using transmission electron microscopy to study this process in detail. As outlined in the introduction, the underlying mechanism of cell-cell interactions is poorly understood. Ultrastructural analysis will reveal any cytoplasmic contact that might be present between blastomeres. The micro-injection of lectins in embryos of G elegatls could allow inhibition of receptors and/or signal molecules involved in cell-cell interactions.