excess intestinal cells

Animals contain an excess number of intestinal cells compared to control. In C. elegans, intestinal cells are derived from E-blastomere. The overproduction of intestinal tissues is a result of other blastomeres adopting an E-like fate or excess cell proliferation in the E lineage.

E lineage variant

The descendants of the E blastomere exhibit altered developmental programs compared to their counterparts in control animals.

no Intestine

Embryos fail to generate cells that exhibit intestinal specification. In C. elegans, the E blastomere is the precursor of all the intestinal cells.

population fitness phenotype

Populations exhibit variations in the ability to survive, grow and reproduce, thus affecting the contribution to the gene pool over generations compared to control populations. In C. elegans the fitness of a population can by assessed by measuring the rate at which E. coli is consumed.