Locomotion of C. elegans: A Piecewise-Harmonic Curvature Representation of Nematode Behavior
Year: 2012
Type: article
Abstract: Caenorhabditis elegans, a free-living soil nematode, displays a rich variety of body shapes and trajectories during its undulatory locomotion in complex environments. Here we show that the individual body postures and entire trails of C. elegans have a simple analytical description in curvature representation. Our model is based on the assumption that the curvature wave is generated in the head segment of the worm body and propagates backwards. We have found that a simple harmonic function for the curvature can capture multiple worm shapes during the undulatory movement. The worm body trajectories can be well represented in terms of piecewise sinusoidal curvature with abrupt changes in amplitude, wavevector, and phase.
Source: PLoS ONE
Authors: Venkat Padmanabhan, Zeina S. Khan, Deepak E. Solomon, Andrew Armstrong, Kendra P. Rumbaugh, Siva A. Vanapalli, Jerzy Blawzdziewicz
Language: English
Subfield: Biomedical Engineering
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,382
OpenAlex ID: W1978562420