Characterization of F57A8.6; a DX domain Protein

• Maliyah Long, Biological Sciences, Delaware State University

• Amber Krauchunas, Biological Sciences, University of Delaware

Studying fertility in C. elegans is an essential project that involves genetic and phenotypic characterization of sterile C. elegans mutants. By identifying and studying these mutants, we can gain crucial insights into the genes and molecular pathways that play a critical role in fertility and reproductive processes. During my summer research, I am focused on investigating the process of sperm activation. Sperm activation, also known as spermiogenesis, is a process by which round immobile spermatids form motile sperm that are capable of fertilizing an egg. Specifically, I am working on the characterization of F57A8.6, which encodes a DX domain-containing protein. The central hypothesis of my research is that sperm activation is affected when the F57A8.6 gene is mutated. I performed DAPI staining, progeny counts, and genetic crosses to study the role of F57A8.6 in reproduction. The combination of genetic and microscopy approaches in this study promises to deepen our understanding of C. elegans fertility and contribute to future discoveries in reproductive biology. By counting progeny at 16°C, 20°C, and 25°C, it’s clear that F57A8.6 hermaphrodites have significantly lower self-fertility than N2 hermaphrodites. The DAPI staining results reveal the presence of sperm in the spermatheca showing that sperm can be made in the absence of F57A8.6, however, more replicates will be required to confirm if the number of sperm is reduced. I am also in the process of generating a F57A8.6; him-8 strain to produce males with the F57A8.6 mutation so that we can investigate the morphology of their sperm.